Strength of a Different Kind
by AleryaLeveilli
Summary: Takes place after the Akatsuki attack Konoha. How do Naruto and Hinata deal with the revelation of her feelings? Does our beloved Knucklehead break the shy girls heart, or will he help her find the strength she had deep down? NaruHina
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, though I wish I did. What can I say, he became very good looking in Shippuden!

Author's note: Ah, man, I now have three work in progress stories on this site. Oh well. I began writing this after we found out Hinata survived. My friends who read these for me think its my best one yet, probably because I was just like Hinata in school, just a little more sarcastic. Here it goes!

* * *

I was walking home after finishing up some remedial training. I had just gotten out of the hospital, now fully recovered from the wound I had sustained defending Naruto from Pain. I still had the scar on my upper right abdomen to show for it.

I glanced around the village, still a work in progress, despite the rebuilding efforts that had begun after the Akatsuki attack three months ago. _Was it only three months ago? It doesn't feel like it has been that long since, but I was in critical condition for most of it. That's what happens when you damage your liver._

"Hinata!" a voice called out. I turned around, my pale lavender eyes widening in surprise.

"Sakura, Ino! What are you doing?" I gasped out, shocked to see them. I thought they were still pulling double shifts at the hospital while Tsunade-sama continued to recover. _At least she is out of that coma. I don't even think Jiraiya got beat up as badly as Danzo did when she found out what he had done while she was incapacitated._

They caught up with me and each took one of my arms. "Now that you are out of the hospital, we have some important business to take care of," Sakura announced.

"What business?" I asked, completely clueless.

"Shopping, the best kind. You need some new clothes, Hinata," Ino happily said.

"Why? My clothes are just fine," I protested.

"Not for a date. A certain ninja we know has been asking us for advice about dates. We know he is going to ask you out," Sakura grinned at me.

I began to blush, "Who is this ninja?" hoping for a certain ninja, and praying it wasn't one of my teammates.

She smirked in reply, "Just a certain hyperactive, knuckleheaded, talented ninja named Naruto Uzumaki."

My blush deepened as I began to hyperventilate. Next thing I knew, I was laying in the street with Ino and Sakura leaning over me. They were laughing.

"Here is your first rule for dating Naruto. You can't faint every time he touches you," Sakura replied while still laughing. "We don't want him to bring you to the hospital right after we finally released you."

I blushed again, "Are you sure? Naruto-kun is going to ask me out?"

They began laughing again as Ino helped me to my feet. "We wouldn't tease you about this, Hinata. He is going to ask you out," she reassured me.

"What should I wear?" I asked, hardly able to believe that Naruto, who I had been crushing on since I was eight, was going to ask me out.

"That is why we are here. Tenten is going to meet us at the store. We will help you find the perfect outfit. Besides, we all have dates we need to prepare for," Ino grinned.

"Who are you all going out with?"

"I finally accepted a date from Lee," Sakura replied with a blush, "Tenten is going with Neji, big surprise, and who are you going with, Ino?"

"Chouji, you won't believe what I had to do to get him to ask me out," she replied.

"You asked him out instead?" Sakura smirked at her friend.

"How did you guess?"

I giggled at the banter, and then stared as we entered one of the best dress stores in Konoha. I had never worn a dress like these, the formal wear in my clan was kimonos only. "I can't wear these," I weakly protested.

Tenten came out from behind a rack of dresses. "Oh, yes, you can, Hinata. You're a pretty girl; don't be afraid to show it. Your father will not disown you for wearing a dress on a date."

"Well…" I murmured, looking over the beautiful dresses. I had plenty of money saved from my missions, so price wasn't a problem. I just normally wore my coat, a mesh t-shirt, and leggings.

"Hmmm, what would look good on you?" Ino mused, looking at my hair, eyes, and skin tone. "I think violet would be a great color on you, maybe also a dark blue. Silver and white would also go great with your coloring."

"I like violet," I murmured.

"How about cap sleeves and a long skirt? That will make you appear taller," Sakura suggested.

I nodded. In the years Naruto had been gone from the village, he had gotten quite tall. I was the shortest of us four kunoichi, and a little sensitive about my height.

"Don't forget heels, to really make you taller. Not to mention, they make your legs look great," Tenten winked at me. I blushed again.

"Hinata, what size do you wear?" Ino asked.

I told her my measurements and her eyes nearly popped out her head. "Are you joking?"

"No, Hanabi had to measure me last week for a new formal kimono," I replied, a little embarrassed.

"Take off that coat, Hinata." I did as they ordered. "Girl, I would kill to have half your curves. If you ever wear that coat again when it isn't winter, I will make Neji break into your room and steal it so I can burn it," Tenten threatened.

I gulped. She was serious, and I knew she could get Neji to do that. "I promise I will only wear this during winter."

"Good," Sakura nodded. She and Ino went tearing through the store, picking up some dresses, discarding others, and getting into arguments about styles and shades of color. Tenten began examining shoes while I looked at jewelry.

About fifteen minutes later, Ino and Sakura came back with their spoils. "Hinata, we've found the perfect dress for you!" Ino announced as they shoved me into a dressing room with a lilac colored dress. "Put it on and show us!"

I shook my head in amazement of my bossy friends and followed orders. The dress was a soft lilac silk, snugly fitted, showing off my figure, but the skirt, which hit me at my knees, was slightly flared, making it easy to walk. The collar, cap sleeves, and the hem were trimmed in a dark violet. I shyly gasped at myself in the mirror. I looked amazing, not the shy, slightly clumsy kunoichi I usually saw.

I exited the dressing room and saw my friends begin to clap. "That is a perfect fit!" Ino sighed, "I am amazing."

"Nice and sweet, but just a little sexy," Sakura analyzed, "Hinata, I think you will knock Naruto unconscious."

"Are you going to get the dress?" Tenten demanded.

"I do like it," I admitted, doing a little twirl.

"It's official, the dress is perfect and now onto our quest for shoes!" Ino exclaimed. I quickly changed back into my clothes, again examining my scar. This represented the day I had finally confessed my feelings to the boy I've admired and loved since our days at the academy. It was a large price to pay, but it had started this. _I just hope he will be gentle with my heart. It's been wounded too many times already._ I stopped my gloomy introspection, and left the dressing room, carrying the dress in my arms.

The shoes were easy; we picked a pair of dark violet dress sandals with four inch heels. I had never worn shoes with heels that high before, but I liked them. Finally, I found a silver necklace, bracelet, earrings, and hairpiece. The other three all found things for their respective dates, but they were mostly focused on me finding the perfect things.

As we left the store, I gave my thanks to me three friends, wishing them luck with their respective dates, and began to head home, carrying my purchases.

"Hey, Hinata-chan!"

I stopped dead in my tracks. I couldn't believe it. And yet here he was, calling my name. _Whatever happens, girl, you had better not stutter or faint!_ I ordered myself. "Naruto-kun! How are you doing?" _Yeah, no stutter!_

"I'm great, Hinata-chan. How are you feeling? I see Grandma Tsunade finally let you out of the hospital." He was starting at my with his bright blue eyes, looking a little nervous. He took a deep breath, "Thank you for helping me with the battle against Pain. I couldn't have defeated him without you. I just wish you hadn't nearly been killed."

"You're welcome, Naruto-kun," I replied, blushing just a little, "As for getting hurt, it is all right. I am fully recovered."

He took another deep breath and met my eyes again, "Do you mean what you said to me, right when you got in between the two of us?"

"I always speak the truth to you, Naruto-kun," I replied with a strength in my voice I didn't know I had, "Yes, I meant every word."

"Why? I am just a knucklehead, according to everyone here."

"I want to tell you, but not in the middle of a street," I quietly replied, still meeting his eyes with a steady gaze.

"Do you want to go out sometime, Hinata-chan? Just to get to know each other better, and maybe you could answer my question. What do you see in me that no one else sees?"

"I see what others overlook," I said, "Yes, I would really enjoy that. I'd love to go out, Naruto-kun!"

He gave me a huge smile. "How about tomorrow night?"

"Sure, at about five?"

"Okay, I'll meet you at your house at five."

"No, not at my house!" I exclaimed, "I don't think my father likes you, Naruto-kun. I'll meet you outside my home." _I don't even want to imagine my father's reaction to this!_

He nodded, understanding, "Not a problem. I'll see you tomorrow, Hinata-chan." Catching me by complete surprise, he gave me a quick kiss on the cheek. "Thank you again. Maybe something can come from this." He gave me a different smile, a little more nervous and tender, and then took off.

"See you, Naruto-kun," I whispered, my mind was racing to process everything that had happened. _Naruto-kun kissed me! _With that thought, I was again passed out in the street.

I came to with Neji shaking my arm. He smirked at me as he helped me up, "Did you just encounter Naruto again?"

"He asked me out, and kissed me on the cheek," I whispered, trying not to pass out from overload again.

He started and then smiled. "I won't tell Hiashi-jisan," he promised while helping gather my spilled purchases. "When is your date?"

"Tomorrow night at five," I replied as we headed home.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: The reason Naruto kissed her was more of a 'thank you' kiss, he's still trying to decide what sort of feelings he has for her.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Naruto, how sad. Then I could make sure Naruto and Hinata end up together.

* * *

"Hmmm, you have beautiful hair, Hinata," Ino murmured as she brushed out my long blue-black hair, "What should we do with it?"

"You can have fun with it," I replied, looking at myself in the mirror. Ino had come over to help me get ready. I was wearing my new dress and shoes, and actually had makeup on.

Ino brightened. "I know what to do. Sit back, Byakugan heiress, and let the master work." She deftly pulled my hair up into a high ponytail, braided it, and twisted it into a knot. She finished the look with the silver hairpiece to hold the knot in place and then straightened my bangs and my forelocks so they framed my face better.

"It looks great, Ino," I said as we both looked at her completed handiwork.

"No hitai-ite allowed today!"

"I know that!" I giggled.

"Just so you know, Sakura has threatened Naruto's life if he wears orange and takes you out for ramen," Ino informed me.

"I don't mind ramen."

Ino rolled her eyes in dismay. "Hinata, I know you've been waiting for this for a long time, but Naruto needs to know that he should treat you nicely."

"He's grown up a lot during the time he was gone with Jiraiya-sama," I protested, feeling a little stung. _How do Ino and Sakura still see him as the irresponsible knucklehead they had known while growing up? He has changed a lot in his years away from the village, while still remaining Naruto. Why can't they see it?_

After Ino had put the finishing touches on me, she took a quick glance at the clock. "It's 4:40, good, we finished just in time."

A small giggle erupted from the other side of the door. I threw open the door and stared at Hanabi as she tumbled into the room, her Byakugan activated.

"Hanabi, why are you spying on me?" I demanded.

She giggled, "Who are you going on a date with, Neechan? If you tell me, I promise I won't tell Father that you lied to him about a girl's night out."

_Little sisters,_ I inwardly cursed, but answered my sister's question. I knew she would follow through with her threat. "Naruto Uzumaki asked me out. Satisfied, Hanabi?"

"Naruto, is he the blonde kid who beat Neji during the Chunin exams when the village was attacked by the Sound and Sand villages?" I nodded. "He seems nice, and I know you like him, Neechan."

I blushed, "Don't tell Father. I don't think he approves of him."

Hanabi's eyes nearly popped out of her head. "Wow, Hinata going against Father's wishes? I didn't think that was possible!"

"I do, for Naruto," I replied, picking up my purse, "I don't know when I'll be back. Don't wait up."

"Mind your manners," she laughed.

I stuck my head into my father's study. "I'm going out with some friends, Father. I don't know when I'll be home."

"See you in the morning, Hinata," he called out as I left.

As soon as I left the Hyuga compound, and Ino headed for home, I saw Naruto waiting for me. "Hinata-chan!"

"Naruto-kun!" I replied, already starting to blush. _Perfect, Hinata, you get the date you've always dreamed of, and you can't stop blushing. _I walked over to him and he took my hand.

"Let's get going," he said, but we were stopped by Neji, who had followed me out of the gate.

"Naruto, you had better take care of Hinata, or I will make you regret it," Neji warned, and then disappeared back inside.

"I think the only people today who haven't threatened me about our date are Kakashi, Grandma Tsunade, Shikamaru, Chouji, Lee and Sai," Naruto muttered, "I'm not that much of an idiot!"

I giggled, "That's what I told them, but they didn't listen to me."

He took a good look at me, "By the way, Hinata-chan, you look gorgeous."

"Thank you. You look very nice yourself." He did look hot. He was wearing black pants and a dark blue button up shirt, his hair was combed, and he wasn't wearing his Leaf hitai-ite.

"Sakura got to me," he replied, looking a little embarrassed.

"All this is Ino's handiwork. She was like a little kid in the candy shop."

"You look beautiful, no matter what, Hinata-chan," he said, "But this is a unique look for you." I saw the way his eyes traveled over my figure, and then how he winced at something. _I wonder what the problem is?_

"Naruto-kun, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Just trying to undo Ero-sennin's influence on me." I didn't enquire further.

We had dinner at a small café not far from the Hokage tower. We talked about the recent rebuilding efforts and what we had been up to while he wasn't in the village. We avoided talking about the battle with the Akatsuki, and the emergence of Sasuke's 'Destroy Konoha' group, Hawk.

While we were eating dessert (cinnamon rolls, my favorite), Naruto had fallen silent and was looking pensive. He was staring into space, not paying attention to anything.

"Naruto-kun, are you all right?" I asked, starting to feel worried.

"Oh, sorry, Hinata. I was just remembering a strange experience I had while fighting Pain."

"What was it, if you don't mind telling me?"

"It was a little confusing, but I don't mind telling you, if you will answer my question first. Let's go somewhere a little more private." He quickly paid the bill and we headed toward a deserted park. We sat down on a bench and I readied myself to answer the question.

"You remember what I said to you when I defended you from Pain, but there is more. As far as I can remember, when everyone saw a kid who couldn't stop screwing up and goofing off, I saw a boy who refused to give up or let others ignore him. You refuse to fade into the background, and are so determined to reach your dreams, no matter how many times you fall and stumble along the way. You do like to make people laugh, but I never did like some of the pranks you pulled."

"The whole Sexy Jutsu thing?"

"Yes, I never did like that," I told him, "I thought was just stupid, but another way to make you stand out. Well, it worked, just not in the way you wanted."

"I'm never doing that again," he muttered, "not if it cost me the respect of the one classmate I had who was always nice to me."

"Just some, not all of it," I told him. "I saw in you many traits I wanted to emulate, your ability to keep getting up when you fall, the way you greet the world with a smile when you have every reason not to, and how you refuse to be beaten, but push yourself to work harder."

"You saw all that in me when we were kids?" I nodded. "How could have I not picked it up?"

"I tried to be invisible. I don't know when my feelings grew from admiration to love, but it happened. That is the best way I can answer your question. Now you get to answer mine."

"After you were hurt, I just got so angry; I began to lose myself to the Kyuubi. I was at a point where I was about to break the seal on me in order to release the fox so he could destroy Pain. Suddenly, the Yondaime Hokage appeared. He told me that he had put a back up in the seal, just in case something like this every happened. He was sorry that it was needed, but he was glad to see me and how I've grown."

"Why was he glad to see you?"

"He said I'm his son. When I heard that, I punched him in the gut. What kind of parent would do that to their own child? Now I realize, how could he ask another parent to do something he wasn't willing to do himself?" He shook his head, obviously overwhelmed, "I know it wasn't some crazy dream, it happened. I know I am his son in my heart, but my head is still having trouble processing it."

"You just want to make sure it is true?" I guessed, "You've been an orphan for so long that the thought that the fact the Yondaime is your father is almost too much to take in, or believe?"

"Exactly, but I don't know who would know. I'm willing to bet that the old man and Ero-sennin knew, but they are both dead. Kakashi-sensei is still in the hospital, and he was the Yondaime's student. But if he knew, why didn't he say anything earlier?"

"Maybe Tsunade-sama knows," I suggested. "She is the Hokage, if she doesn't know, I'm sure she knows how to find out."

He looked up and saw the Hokage's office light still on. "She's still there, trying to undo Danzo's mess. Let's go ask her right now!"

"Do you want me to go with you, Naruto-kun?" I asked, wondering if he wanted this to be private.

He turned pleading blue eyes at me and grasped my hand tight, "Please come with me, Hinata-chan. With how clearly you've been able to see me, I know you won't treat me differently despite what the truth is. I already have your respect."

We ran to the Tower and once we arrived, Naruto knocked on the door while I took the shoes off of my aching feet. "Come in, unless your name is Naruto," a dry voice called from the other side.

We entered, still holding hands. "Grandma Tsunade, I have a few questions for you, and no, I am not asking for a mission."

Tsunade smiled, stress leaving her brown eyes, "Ah, so this is a social visit. Come in and sit down. I need a break from all this paperwork, and Shizune isn't around anymore to make sure it gets done." She wiped a tear from her eye. "Let me put a pot of tea on." Her eyes finally noticed me standing next to Naruto. "What are you doing here with this knucklehead, Hinata-sama?" The term was spoken as an endearment, not an insult.

I smiled, showing her our joined hands. "We're on a date, Hokage-sama."

She raised her eyebrows. "You have good taste, both of you." She got a pot of tea started ad sat down next to us. Naruto told her what he had told me earlier. Once he was finished, she leaned forward and stared at him, obviously shocked.

"Tsunade-sama, is my father the Yondaime Hokage?" Naruto asked calmly.

She smiled sadly at him. "You are sixteen now, and have proven yourself mature enough to handle the truth. Yes, your father is Minato Namikaze, the Yondaime Hokage and Yellow Flash of Konoha. Your mother is Kushina Uzumaki, the Red Whirlpool and katana mistress of the Hidden Leaf. She died giving birth to you. You were given your mother's name to help protect you from your father's enemies, which were many. You look almost exactly like your father, but have your mother's personality. I can't believe Kakashi is so dense to not realize it. He was one of the few witnesses when Minato and Kushina eloped. I believe that Sarutobi-sensei was going to tell you on your sixteenth birthday, but he passed away before that could happen. I should have told you earlier, and I am sorry, Naruto, but now you know."

Naruto stayed silent and pensive as he absorbed everything Tsunade had told him. I spoke up, "Is there anyone else who knew Naruto-kun's parents?"

"Kushina's best friend you knew quite well, Hinata," Tsunade smiled at me, "Her name was Hitomi Hyuga."

I gasped, "My mom?"

She gave a small laugh, "Yes, your mother. They were best friends since they started at the academy. Kushina was quite a bit like Naruto. She was tomboyish, a little brash, found of pranks, and never knew when to quit. She gave Hitomi the nickname, Kame, or turtle, because whenever Hitomi felt unsure of herself, she would retreat into a shell, like you do."

"My father says I am very much like my mother," I whispered.

"Yes, Hitomi was very much like you. She was rather shy and unsure of herself; but when Kushina could get her to open up, she was almost a different person. She was still quiet, but with a rather sharp wit and keen, almost blunt, observations. Hitomi had a quiet strength and dignity about her, like you, and I remembering hoping more than once Kushina would learn the dignity from her. She would laugh and help Kushina with pranks, and gave her advice when Kushina fell for Minato." She sighed in mournful remembrance. "So many are gone now, either killed when the Kyuubi attacked, during the Sound invasion, by the Akatsuki, or just ninja missions in general."

We both nodded in agreement. We all knew people who had been killed, like Jiraiya-sama, Asuma-sensei, and Shizune, just to name a few. We all stayed silent, musing on what Tsunade-sama had revealed that night.

The Hokage yawned, "Wow, it is getting late. Naruto, you had better get Hinata home before Hiashi assumes the worst."

"My father thinks that I am with Sakura, Ino, and Tenten. I don't think he likes Naruto," I blurted out.

"How many adults like me?" Naruto asked rhetorically.

"I like you, brat, and many of the adults do accept you now. They are just unsure what to make of you. Hiashi likes you; he just disapproves of Hinata's interest in you. Also, it means he has to accept that she is growing up and interested in boys, which no father likes." We both looked puzzled. "You'll understand when you become parents."

"Still, it's not his choice to decide who is good for me or not!" I angrily blurted out, and then promptly clapped my hands over my mouth when I realized what I had said while my face flamed.

Naruto's eyes nearly popped out of his head, and he began laughing. "I always knew you had a defiant part inside of you. Let it out more often, Hinata-chan."

Tsunade smiled, "I agree. You may be gentle, but you have the strong heart and soul of a shinobi. Get going, you two. That is an order from the Hokage." She paused, and leveled her intense brown-eyed gaze at Naruto, "If you do anything to break Hinata's heart, I will bust you back to the academy, understand, brat?"

"Understood, Hokage-sama," Naruto gulped. I giggled.

Tsunade turned her glare on me. "Hinata, stand up to your father and be honest with him about Naruto. If you don't, I will… I will…," she paused, obviously unable to come up with a good threat. "Use your imagination, Hinata."

"I promise, Hokage-sama. Have a good evening."

Naruto and I left her office and he walked me back to the Hyuga compound. When we reached the gates, he blushed and said, a little awkwardly, "I had a really good time tonight, Hinata-chan, and thanks for listening. You really helped me out tonight."

"You're welcome, Naruto-kun," I whispered. "It was a great night. I'm glad I could help, even thought Tsunade-sama was the one with the answers to your questions."

"You are the one who pointed me in the right direction," he insisted, "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yes, see you tomorrow, Naruto-kun," I replied, "Have a good night and get home safely."

He nodded, looking a little unsure about something. "Can I try something, Hinata-chan?" I nodded, and almost before I realized it, he had leaned in and placed his lips on mine. It was quick, just a few seconds, but it was bliss for me. "Good night, and sleep well," he said as he pulled away and began to head home.

"Good night, Naruto-kun," I called out, still breathless and dazed from the kiss. He waved in acknowledgement, and once he was out of sight, I managed to make my way into the compound. Once I reached my bedroom, I collapsed onto my bed, one hand touching my still-tingling lips. _A real kiss! Naruto-kun gave me my first real kiss!_ I laughed from sheer pleasure, unwilling to move to break the mood I was in. I hadn't felt so happy since before my mother died giving birth to Hanabi.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, but if I did, things would be different.

Author's note: New Chapter! Some time has passed, and Hinata may seem a little OOC, but she has been placed in different and challenging circumstances, which has forced her to grow and change. I see a lot of similarities to Hinata and myself, and these are changes that were forced on me, much like they were forced onto her. Please Read and Review! I enjoy hearing your comments, just no Flames allowed.

* * *

"Okay, Hinata, try to block these!" Sakura challenged, readying her senbons. She had taken a leaf from Shizune's book and learned to fight with them. Occasionally they were poisoned, but not in practice.

"Bring it on, Sakura," I replied, "Byakugan! Protective Eight Trigrams, Sixty-Four Palms!"

I easily blocked every senbon, kunai, and shuriken that Sakura and Sai sent my way. My personal Jutsu was still an amazing defense, and nothing could get through it. Naruto was on the other side of the clearing, practicing with the Rasengan, and Kakashi-sensei was up in a tree, reading his book as usual.

About seven months ago, a few weeks after Naruto and I began dating; Tsunade-sama reorganized our teams. Due to Asuma's death, the teams were unbalanced, and she didn't have any one available to take over Asuma's team. She ended up putting Chouji with Guy's team, to improve his taijutsu. Once Kurenai-sensei had returned to active duty, she was given Shikamaru and Ino for her squad, and lost me. I was placed in Kakashi's team. She had instructed Kakashi-sensei and I to see if we could come up with a defense against the Sharingan using the Byakugan. Sakura had them muttered she thought that Tsunade-sama was doing some matchmaking on the side between the Hyuga heiress and the knucklehead. Tsunade didn't deny it.

As far as I knew, I was the only person who Naruto had confided the identity of his parents to. When I had asked him why, he explained that he wanted to earn the respect of the villagers on his own, not because of his name and family. He was willing to bide his time to inform his friends. I had informed my father of my desire to date Naruto. That was an experience that I never want to go through again.

_I quietly knocked on the door to my father's study. "Come in," he called out._

_"Good morning, Father," I said, trying to sound strong, despite my fears. "I have a request."_

_"What is it?"_

_"I would like to date a fellow shinobi. He is someone who is very strong and I have admired for quite some time."_

_"Really?" he sounded interested._

_I gulped, "It is Naruto Uzumaki, Father. I know he is the Jinchuriki holding the Kyuubi no Kitsune and I don't care. He saved my life when the Akatsuki attacked the village."_

_"And are there any more reasons why he should be considered worthy to date the Hyuga heiress?" my father coldly asked._

_I stood tall and managed to find my backbone, "Because I think he is worthy. Naruto is the most worthy ninja in the village in my opinion, and it is very likely Tsunade will name him her successor as Hokage once he becomes a Jonin, which will come quickly."_

_"You will not budge on this, will you?" he asked, surprise evident in his voice. I nodded. "Very well, you may date him, for now. Just remember, you are the clan heiress, and are required to live up to the clan standards, and follow the orders of your clan head and elders."_

_"I understand," I said, feeling relieved._

_"When you do marry, Hinata, I expect you to be pure, and not tainted by Naruto." _

_"I understand, Father. I will only give myself to my husband when the time is right."_

_"Good to hear. You are dismissed, Hinata._

Naruto had been happy when he found out Father had given me permission for us to date. We had been together for the past eight months, and it had been great. We had gradually become best friends and confidants, thanks to both to dating and being teammates. I had completely fallen for him; even his weaknesses endeared me more to him.

Sai threw a final kunai at me, and having a flash of inspiration; I caught it instead and threw it toward Kakashi. He didn't notice it in time, and the kunai lodged firmly into his IchaIcha novel.

He jumped out of the tree, completely stunned, "Okay, who desecrated my book? Naruto, Hinata, Sakura, Sai?"

Sai and Sakura both pointed at me. "Traitors," I murmured, while Naruto fell down laughing.

"Hinata Hyuga?!" Kakashi sounded shocked. "Why did you do this? This is a limited edition, signed by the author. I can never replace it!"

"Nice shot, Hinata!" Sakura cheered.

"I'm glad I wasn't the target," Sai stated, "Or my art book."

I giggled. "Your art isn't perverted, unlike that book. I merely improved it. Kakashi-sensei should be thanking me. Wait…Byakugan!" Activating my bloodline, I saw Kakashi start to sneak up behind me with a water balloon in hand. I grabbed a shuriken and threw it at the balloon, managing to nick and pop it, drenching him and the book.

"Naruto, what have you done to the shy, quiet Hinata that was assigned to our group?" Sakura laughed.

Kakashi glared at Naruto, "Keep your girlfriend under control, please, Naruto!"

"I'm not that stupid. Hinata-hime's only done what all of us have been dying to do since we were Genin," Naruto laughed, still on the ground. Sai gave a rare smile and nodded in agreement.

Kakashi took a look at the timepiece he wore on his wrist. "We're done with training for today. Good work, all of you. I'll see you all here at eight in the morning."

"Translation, ten o'clock," Sakura muttered.

"We'd better bring a book," I said, purposely making my voice loud enough for Kakashi to hear. He growled as Sakura, Naruto, Sai, and I all burst out laughing at my comment.

As Naruto walked me home, we were still laughing at what I had done to Kakashi's book. I couldn't believe that I was daring enough to do that. I had changed a lot in my seven months with Kakashi's team. I had become stronger, more willing to speak my mind, and a rather surprising sense of humor, with a dose of sarcasm. It tended to shock people; I had once nearly gave Hanabi a heart attack when I was sarcastic with her.

My father was waiting for us at the gates of the Hyuga compound. "Hinata, can you tell Naruto goodbye?" he requested, his pale eyes focused only on me. "We have a few things we need to discuss."

"Sure, Father," I turned to Naruto, "I'll see you tomorrow," and gave him a small kiss on the cheek, not even minding my father watching us. Naruto gave his farewells, and I followed my father to his office.

"Hinata, you are the heiress to our clan, the closest thing Konoha has to a princess, and yet you persist in seeing this boy who has no family, no clan, or resources, expect for the demon he is holding hostage. I have permitted you to indulge yourself in this flirtation with that boy, but no more."

"He isn't without resources," I replied, "He inherited quite a sum of money from Jiraiya-sama. And this isn't a flirtation I share with Naruto!"

"That doesn't matter, he still doesn't have any family or anything that will benefit our clan."

I bit my tongue to keep from blurting out Naruto's true name and parentage. I knew it would stop my father's tirade, but I knew I needed to honor to Naruto's wishes.

"In order to keep you reputation, and our clan's untarnished, I decided I needed to take some drastic action. People are talking about you and the Kyuubi brat, and I needed to stop them. I have arranged a marriage for you."

"WHAT!" I screeched, not even caring about the mask I was supposed to wear as a Hyuga.

"To Takahiro Hyuga," he continued, ignoring my outburst. Takahiro is a distant cousin of mine, a member of the Main Branch. "And you will be wed at the end of the month. Hinata, as the head of the Hyuga clan, I order you to end your relationship with Naruto Uzumaki, and marry Takahiro. This match will be advantageous to you as the Clan heiress. Takahiro will be a great assistant to you when you take over the clan."

"Father, I won't do it! I love Naruto Uzumaki, and I refuse to marry anyone else!" I exclaimed, standing up to meet my father's pale gaze.

"I am the head of this clan, Hinata, and you will follow my orders!"

"And I will become the clan head," I protested.

"What is with this attitude? You didn't get it until I permitted the two of you to date. What has he done to you, daughter?"

"I have always had this attitude, Father, I have just been scared to show my true self until now. It is thanks to Naruto I was able to find my backbone." I turned around, focused my chakra, and destroyed the office door. "I'll see you later, Father," I coldly said, and left without getting dismissed.

I walked with a dignified step to my bedroom, slightly ashamed of my outburst. I was behaving like a spoiled child who didn't get their way, not a Chunin. _Well, how did he expect me to react? Just to suddenly announce that he wants me to break up with Naruto and marry Takahiro because he wants me to? Not going to happen, Father. I promise you that._ I quickly made it to my room, closed the door and sat on my bed.

A gentle knock sounded on my door, and Hanabi entered. "Hinata-neechan, it is time for dinner."

"I'm not hungry, Hanabi-chan," I said, trying not to let my anger show in front of my sister. "I don't want to see Father again."

"What happened? Father's been training you and he thinks you are now worthy to lead the clan. Tell me, Hinata-neechan."

"Worthy enough to make me marry Takahiro," I snapped out, not bothering to disguise the disgust in my voice.

"He's doing what? But you're in love with Naruto, and I can tell Naruto loves you. You can see it in his eyes."

"I can see it, also, Hanabi-chan. However, Father doesn't care. He says that my dating Naruto is starting to damage my reputation and our clans, so he has to marry me off." I shook my head, grabbed my coat, and headed toward the window. "I need to get out of here."

"I'll tell Father you have a headache," Hanabi said as I jumped out the window and left the compound.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own naruto, only in my dreams, and those the good ones.

Author's note: Wow, two updates in one day! I am really having fun with this story, but it is how I unwind fro studying anatomy and pathology and the like. I already have it completed in a notebook, now I'm just transferring it to this site. My Narnia one is coming along slowly, because the notebook I had it in grew legs and walked off. I can;t find it in the black hole called my room. Oh well, here is the next installment. I need to get some reviews before I post more. Review please. No flames, please!

* * *

I sat on top of the Fourth Hokage's stone head, staring out at the sunset, still fuming. _How dare he try to control my life? I am the one who has to live it? Why did my mother and Hizashi-jisan have to die? Father didn't get like this until after_ _they died. Oh, Mother, I need you here right now. You would be able to talk some sense into Father._

"Interesting to find you up here, Hinata-imotochan. I thought this was Naruto's spot to think."

I didn't bother to turn around. I recognized the voice, and knew he would be the one to follow me. "Hello, Neji-niisan."

"I overheard your conversation with Hiashi-sama accidentally and know what he wants you to do." My cousin sat down next to me. "I would have broken his nose, not the office door."

"He's still my father, and I love him. I've never been hurt this badly, even when he began ignoring me in favor of training you and Hanabi, He's ignored me since my mother died giving birth to Hanabi, and when I finally find my strength, he decides he needs to make me into a proper heir be forcing me to marry our cousin."

"It's not right. You have changed so much since you and Naruto began dating. Your destiny belongs with Naruto, not our clan."

"I choose my destiny, Neji, and if I have to choose between Naruto and our clan, I choose Naruto. He accepts me, weaknesses and all, and he's willing to help me overcome them. You should lead our clan, Neji-niisan, you are the best suited for it."

He gave a slight smile, "One thing at a time, Hinata-chan. First, we have to find a way to thwart Hiashi's plans for you to wed Takahiro." He placed a hand on my shoulder as he stood up. "Wait here for a moment, I'll be back." With that, he had disappeared among the rooftops of Konoha.

I waited thinking and pondering while the sun slipped further below the horizon. Not long afterward, I heard a familiar voice demand, "What do you mean by Hiashi is going to force Hinata to break up with me and marry some guy she doesn't even like?"

I turned to Naruto and Neji. "It's because he doesn't think you are good enough for the Hyuga heiress." I shook my head, trying to hide my tears with my hair, "He says that because you don't have a respectable family or any resources, meaning that he doesn't think you can care for me."

Naruto was shocked, to say it lightly, "He said what?"

"Please, don't make me repeat it," I whispered, wiping away my tears. His hands stopped mine and proceeded to finish the job. He then took me into his arms and rested his chin on top of my head.

"I'm not letting you get away from me without a fight, Hinata-hime. I finally found someone to love, who for some amazing reason, loves me back," he whispered into my hair.

"You may not need to fight Hiashi, Naruto; there is another way out of this mess." Neji said, and then left us alone on top of the stone head of Naruto's father.

"Does your cousin enjoy confusing me riddles?" Naruto grumbled, his face still buried in my hair.

"He likes for people to figure things out for themselves," I replied, and paused, "Do you mean what you said? Do you love me?"

"Yes, I do, my Hime. I love you."

"That's the first time I have ever heard you say that, but your eyes have said it for months now," I whispered. "Thank you, Naruto-kun. I love you." I stayed silent, also thinking about Neji's cryptic remark.

"What other way was he talking about?"

It hit me all of a sudden. "There is a way without us directly confronting my father. He can't marry me off if I'm already married."

Naruto stiffened, "Are you serious, Hinata-hime? You want to marry me?"

"I don't think I stuttered," I whispered, and gave him a quick kiss. I was blushing in embarrassment for speaking my mind, but inwardly I was on soaring for letting Naruto know my thoughts and hearing his confession.

"Are you sure? Most of the village doesn't like me because of my tenant. Are you willing to put up with it? They would dislike you for joining your life with mine."

"I don't care what everyone else thinks of you. I don't even care what my father thinks. My opinion is the only one that counts, and I say that they are all idiots, for they haven't looked beneath the surface. I love you, Naruto-kun, and I don't give a dang about the Kyuubi."

He gave me one of his tender smiles, the ones I only saw directed toward me. "I love you also, Hinata-hime." He gently pulled me closer to him. "Will you marry this knucklehead?"

I lifted my eyes to meet his azure ones, "Yes, Naruto-kun, I would be honored to become the wife of the Leaf Village's knuckleheaded ninja." _And next Hokage, _I mentally added.

"Yahoo!" Naruto exclaimed, loud enough for the entire village to hear him. After he calmed down and removed a crystal necklace from around his neck. I gasped as he put it around my neck. It was the Shodai's necklace, which Tsunade-sama had given to him when he was thirteen.

"I don't have a ring right now, Hinata-hime, but this is one of my most precious possessions. I think it is appropriate my most precious person should wear it. That is why I call you hime, you are my princess and I want to protect you." I gave him a long, passionate kiss, stopping his spoken train of thought.

When we finally parted for breath, I began to laugh. "If afterward, we tell my father your parentage; can you imagine the look on his face?"

He also laughed, and picked me up, bridal style. "Let's go, Hinata-hime. I think we need to go see Tsunade-baachan. I have a feeling we're going to need her help to pull this off."

* * *

"Hiashi Hyuga wants Hinata to marry one of her cousins? And to stop it, you two want me to help you do what?" Tsunade-sama demanded, disbelief coloring her tone. "You two are seriously planning to elope and defy the most powerful clan head in Konoha?"

We both gulped and nodded. _This doesn't seem like the best idea, _I thought.

She abruptly began laughing, "Good for the two of you! It's about time Hiashi learns a lesson. What do you need me to do?"

"Can you make up some sort of mission to send the two of us on, that will have us gone for at least a month?" Naruto asked.

"Even better, I won't make one up for just you two, but all of your friends as well. They should be there for this." She smiled at the two of us, standing hand in hand. "I have been meaning to make a trip to Suna, so why don't I assign Team Kakashi to accompany me? That way Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro can also be there."

"Do you mind getting married in Sunagakure, Hinata-hime?" Naruto asked, obviously worried I would object to the location.

"Not at all," I replied, almost in shock. My brain was still trying to process the fact Tsunade was willing to help us.

"Good, now for Team Guy and Team Kurenai, let me see…" She began sorting through the mission request forms on her desk, and pulled out two. "These are near Fire's border with Wind. I'll assign Kurenai's and Guy's teams on these, and arrange passports into Suna so they can be there. I would try to send Iruka on a mission as well, but it would be suspicious for him to leave the Academy. The two teams will meet us their missions are complete. I'll formally assign the missions tomorrow morning. Have a good evening, and Hinata, tomorrow I will help you find a dress. Naruto, you had better get some new clothes as well, because if you show up to your wedding wearing that jumpsuit, Hinata will become a widow. Get it, brat?"

"Got it, baachan. I'll go shopping before we leave for Suna," Naruto promised.

"You are dismissed," she said, yawning, "I'll you tomorrow with your team."

I ended up slipping back into my bedroom after midnight. Naruto and I had continued to make plans for a few hours after we had left the Hokage's office. "Hinata," a voice sounded from the darkness. I managed to conceal the fright it gave me.

"Father," I replied, my voice emotionless, and grateful the Shodai's necklace was hidden underneath my shirt.

"I just want you to know that I only want the best for you," he said, sounding stiff.

I turned on a lamp and stared him down, "Unfortunately, Father, we have to very different ideas about what is the best for me. Pardon me, but I need to get to bed. The Hokage wants to see my team first thing in the morning."

He could tell I wasn't going to budge tonight, he left my room, and I crawled into bed, wanting to sleep to help prepare myself for the coming days.


	5. Chapter 5

Author's note: Well, well, what does the Hokage have up her sleeve, how will the rest of the Konoha Twelve react? I admit, I am an insomniac, and that is why this sounds so crazy! Please read and review! Oh before I forget....

Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Naruto! I'm just having fun, so please don't sue me (And make sure Hinata and Naruto end up together, that also would be nice)

* * *

Four Jonin and eleven Chunin stood before the Hokage the next morning. "I am supposedly sending all of you on B-rank and A-rank missions, but the true purpose of these missions are an S-ranked secret," Tsunade informed us and our senseis.

"Ah, what a drag," Shikamaru groaned, "Why don't we ever get any easy missions?"

Ino smacked her team mate upside the head, like she would a brother, "Stop complaining and listen to the Hokage!" We all laughed at their antics, and then grew serious as Tsunade cleared her throat.

"We are helping two of our shinobi elope," she announced bluntly. Naruto and I managed to keep our faces straight. I did see Neji glance towards us out of the corner of my eye. _He suspects us, but I know he won't betray us to Father._

Kiba snorted with laughter. "And that's an S-ranked secret? Are you joking, Hokage-sama? What is the real reason for this secrecy?"

She glared at him with hard brown eyes, causing Akamaru to hide behind Kiba and whimper in fright. "Yes, it is, especially when it comes to defying the one of the most powerful clan heads in Konohagakure. I am not joking, Kiba Inuzuka. Since all of you know these ninja, I thought all of you would like a chance to be there. If you think it's beneath you, you can leave right now."

"No, now I'm curious," Kiba replied, trying not to let his fear show.

Neji smirked, "May I venture a guess as for who these two Shinobi are?" Tsunade nodded. "Is it Hinata Hyuga and Naruto Uzumaki?"

Everyone gasped and stared at the two of us. "When did they get engaged?" Ino whispered.

"No clue, I didn't think they were that serious," Sakura replied, sounding a little jealous. She gave me a slight glare. I held Naruto's hand and met her gaze squarely.

"Is there a reason for the urgency?" Kiba asked, "Did the dead last knock up my former team mate?"

I blushed bright red at Kiba's bluntness, and fainted as the blood rushed from my head. I came to hearing Kiba getting beaten up and yelled at by Tenten, Sakura, and Ino. "How dare you say something like that about my friends!" Ino yelled.

"Kiba shut your mouth before I cut your tongue out!" Tenten threatened.

"I think you might have killed her, so I will have to kill you!" Sakura shouted.

"I'm awake," I spoke up, discovering I was being held by Naruto.

Sakura turned at the sound of my voice, "Naruto, is that why you and Hinata are getting married so quickly?" Her gloves were on and she was looking very dangerous.

Naruto looked panicked, "No, not at all, Sakura. We haven't slept together, just kissed, I swear! We're eloping because Hiashi-sama doesn't like Hinata-hime and me together, and he's going to force her to marry some guy she hates at the end of the month. I love her, and this is the best way to stop his plans."

"It was my idea," I murmured, "But Neji is the one who gave me the idea. I love Naruto, and refuse to obey my father's wishes."

Ino, Sakura, and Tenten all stared at us as Naruto helped me stand back up. "Who would have believed the knucklehead had a romantic side?"

"Not I," Sakura said, "The most I thought he had romance-wise was from catching him making out with Hinata when we were supposed to be practicing."

"That was three months ago, Sakura!" I exclaimed, embarrassed.

"Your fires of youth burn brightest when you are together!" Lee exclaimed, "I will be honored to help you two."

Kurenai looked at Naruto, "Take care of her…or else."

"No offense, Kurenai-sensei, if I'm willing to defy Hiashi Hyuga, you can't scare me. That honor only belongs to Tsunade-baachan," Naruto cheekily replied. "But I will take care of Hinata-hime, and give her the love she deserves. You have my promise on that."

Kakashi laughed, "Congratulations, you two. I'm so pleased for the two of you, I even forgive Hinata for destroying my book."

"May your fires of youth grow strong together and give birth to new flames!" Guy said, "Oh, I love weddings!" Naruto and I both sweat dropped and blushed at that, when we realized he was referring to children.

"Okay, we will all be leaving tomorrow, and not a word of this may reach Hiashi Hyuga. If he finds out, I will find whoever blabbed and use their head as a paperweight for my desk," Tsunade threatened, "I am making a state visit to Sunagakure, to discuss some details of our alliance with the Kazekage. Team Kakashi will accompany me. Team Kurenai, Team Guy, these are your missions. Once you have completed them, you will join us in Suna in time for the ceremony. You will then leave the day after the ceremony. No, Shikamaru, you may not stay longer to hang out with your girlfriend. ("What a drag.") We will be staying for six weeks in Suna. Once Team Kurenai and Team Guy return, I would like for you to please try and turn Naruto's apartment into something suitable for a couple." She then turned and faced Kakashi, Sakura, Sai, Naruto and myself. "Kakashi, Sakura, and Sai will handle escort duties while we are in Suna. Naruto and Hinata, you two can do what ever you want while we are there, including getting married." She smiled, "And I claim dibs on being mother of the groom!"

"I'm mother of the bride," Kurenai called out.

"I'll be the father of the bride," Neji said, smiling at me, "If Hinata approves, of course."

"I would be honored, Neji-niisan," I replied with a smile.

"Can I be father of the groom, Naruto?" Kakashi asked.

"Sure, Kakashi-sensei, but if you are late, I'll have Gaara do it instead," Naruto replied with a grin.

"Can we help with clothes?" Ino begged.

"Yes," we both said as one, "but we'll need to be discreet."

I added, "My father suspects I am up to something."

"I want to be there when you tell him you eloped with the Namikaze heir," Tsunade whispered into my ear. I giggled in anticipation.

During the day, we bought the clothes we needed, saying that we all needed new formal wear for our mission in Suna. Tsunade was the lucky one who informed my father that he would have to postpone my wedding to Takahiro because I was going to be gone for at least seven weeks on a mission. He wasn't happy, but there is no arguing with a determined Hokage.

As the six of us left the next day, Hanabi pressed a small silk wrapped package into my hands. She gave me a wink and a smirk, "Good luck, Hinata-neechan."

As we left, Naruto whispered in my ear, "Does she know what we have planned?"

"She suspects that we're up to something, but she won't tell Father. She likes you," I replied, squeezing his hand.

"Come on, you two lovebirds. Pick up the pace; it's a long three days to Suna!" Tsunade called out.

"Yes, Hokage-sama!" we replied in unison.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto! Dang it

Author's note: Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, I love hearing your comments. Now on to Suna, and warning you, I like to have a bit of fun with Kankuro. I still like him as a character, but he is one of those ones it is just fun to mess with. On with the story! Please read and review, no flames, please

* * *

"Welcome to Sunagakure no Sato!" A cheerful and familiar voice echoed from the walls.

"Hello, Temari! How are you doing?" Sakura called out, waving to the Suna kunoichi.

Temari stood in front of us, "Hokage Senju Tsunade-sama, we are honored by your visit. Kakashi Hatake, Sai, Sakura Haruno, Hinata Hyuga, and Naruto Uzumaki, I will be your guide while you are staying here."

'It is good to see you, Temari. How is Gaara dealing with being Kazekage?" Naruto asked.

"He is looking forward to seeing you again," she replied, and then noticed our held hands. "So the rumors I heard from Ino are true. You do have a girlfriend."

I grinned shyly, and showed her the Shodai's necklace, "We're engaged, actually. We just haven't been able to get a ring yet."

Her mouth fell open in shock, "I need to get a certain lazy Konoha ninja to speed things up. Naruto's engaged, is the world coming to an end?"

We all laughed at that, even Naruto, and then Tsunade spoke up, "Well, we need your help with a delicate matter, Temari. Considering you are Suna's ambassador to Konoha, I figure it would be best to ask you first. How would the Kazakage feel about having two Leaf shinobi marry here?"

"Well, I say it isn't a problem, diplomatic relations wise. As for Gaara's opinion, you'll just have to ask him. Follow me." We followed her into Suna. As she led us through the streets, people stared at us with curiosity and occasional apprehension. It was unusual for Shinobi from a different village to visit for anything other than the Chunin Exams, let alone another Kage.

As we enter the Kazekage's office, both Gaara and Kankuro were there waiting for us.

"Welcome to the Village Hidden in the Sand, Hokage-sama, Kakashi Hatake, Naruto Uzumaki, Hinata Hyuga, Sakura Haruno, and Sai," Gaara formally greeted us. The red-headed seventeen-year-old was dressed in the blue and white robes of the Kazekage, and was still very intimidating. Not even Tsunade can intimidate people the way Gaara can. "I hope that your stay here will be both pleasant and productive."

Kankuro grinned evilly, "Shall we have some fun? It's a little boring here right now."

"Shut up, Kankuro," Temari and Gaara said in unison.

Tsunade smiled at the Sand Siblings interactions, "Well, there is one thing you can help us with to relieve the boredom. Hinata and Naruto are engaged, but her father doesn't approve and is trying to force her into an arranged marriage to keep her away from him. Do you three want to help them elope?"

Gaara nodded, "We will be honored. As Kazekage, I can perform the ceremony. Do you approve, Naruto and Hinata?"

I silently nodded, while Naruto replied, "That would be awesome, Gaara. One of my best friends performing my marriage to the best girl on earth? I couldn't turn that down." I admit, Gaara still creeped me out a bit, ever since I had seen him kill those ninja in the Forest of Death during our first Chunin exam, but since Naruto trusted him, I chose to.

"Bachelor party!" Kankuro yelled.

"No way!" Tsunade, Sakura, and I all yelled as one.

"You're no fun," he muttered.

"Tell me about it," Kakashi muttered, "Do you want a bachelor party, Naruto?"

"No," Naruto replied.

"What is a bachelor party?" Sai asked. We all rolled our eyes at his naiveté.

"You don't want to know," Temari replied, "Kankuro will just use it as an excuse to act like an idiot."

"Not that he needs one," Gaara dryly added. We all cracked up at that.

Tsunade turned to Naruto and me, "Are you two lovebirds ready to tie the knot?"

"Aren't we going to wait for Kurenai's and Guy's teams?" I asked.

"They should be here in about three days," she replied.

"What do you need us to do to help prepare the ceremony?" Gaara asked.

"I'll help with the details!" Temari said, obviously excited. "First things first, you need a chance to bathe and rest. As the firstborn of my family, I offer you the hospitality of our home. If you wish, the wedding can take place there."

"That is a good idea, Temari," Tsunade replied.

"Thank you," Sakura said, obviously wanting to take a nap. Temari led us to her home, and showed us all to guest bedrooms. Once I had bathed, I sat on my bed and opened the package Hanabi had given me. Several pieces of jewelry, made of silver with pale violet gems and pearls inlaid, tumbled over my lab and the bedspread. There also was a note among the jewelry.

Hinata, these are your inheritance from our mother, Hitomi. I found the jewel box in Father's office last night, and felt that you should wear them when you and Naruto join your lives together. Good luck to the two of you, and I promise I won't inform Father. Love, Hanabi_._

I smiled as I read the note and fingered the delicate jewelry. _These will go perfectly with my wedding Kimono, _I thought, and giggled. I abruptly yawned, put the jewelry back into its box, stretched out and fell asleep.

"Hey, Hinata-hime, wake up!" My eyes snapped open as Naruto jumped on my bed. He sat next to me as I stretched and yawned, trying to fully wake up. "Did you have a good nap?" he asked, blue eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Yes, I did," I replied as I gave his side a tickle. He almost hit the roof, and once he had recovered, trapped my arms above my head.

"That wasn't funny, Hinata-hime," he whispered, nose only an inch from mine, his body on top of mine.

I raised my head up and gave him a quick, playful kiss. "It was funny to me, Naruto-kun." I brushed the tip of his nose with my own. "I promise to not tickle you if you promise to not jump on my bed."

"Okay, but pretty soon it will be _our_ bed," he replied, causing me to blush. "You're really cute when you blush, Hinata-hime."

"You used to say it was weird," I replied, trying to keep my head on.

"In my defense, I was a clueless, thirteen-year-old knucklehead when I said that," he defended himself, and gave me a kiss.

It quickly escalated into a full blown make out session. After about fifteen minutes, we were interrupted by someone clearing their throat. "Well, at least you are getting married in a few days, but you're not married yet. Naruto, get off of Hinata!" She paused and stared at us as we hastily removed our hands from underneath the other's shirt. She then yelled, "Naruto, you pervert! What have you been teaching Hinata?" Her fists were glowing with chakra. Naruto ended up falling off the bed in shock, and I sat up, trying to straighten my disheveled clothes while recovering my breath."

"Sakura, we were just kissing," I defended, trying to reign in my impulse to block her chakra points before she killed my fiancé.

"Looks like it was a lot more than that," she muttered.

"Okay, so we were also touching each other," I replied, and thought out loud. "You don't need to get jealous about us getting some action because you're not getting any, cherry blossom head." I clapped my hands over my mouth in shock when I realized I had spoken out loud. Naruto was laughing, and from out in the hallway, I could hear Kakashi's, Tsunade's, Kankuro's, and Temari's laughter. Sakura was livid, to say it nicely.

Kankuro entered the doorway and draped his arm around her shoulders, "Want to change that, sweetie?"

"Baka!" she yelled and then decked him with a chakra powered fist. Kankuro went flying down the wall and hit the far wall hard enough to make a dent.

Temari cheered, "Hit him again, Sakura!"

Naruto wrapped his arms around my waist and whispered in my ear, "Thank you for distracting her."

"Okay, it is time for dinner. Sakura, you can kill my brother as the after dinner entertainment," Temari laughed.

"Really, I thought that was Gaara's job," Kakashi replied.

"Nope, he won't kill family," Temari grinned.

"Let's get going," Tsunade said. We all followed her to the dining room, Kankuro sporting a magnificent black eye.

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	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I don't own naruto, but if I did, NaruHina would be canon, and Sasuke would have never had that stupid chicken-butt hairstyle!

Author's note: Thanks to everyone who reviewed. Here is the next chapter, because I'm having trouble sleeping again (My old enemy, insomnia, DIE YOU!). No more Kankuro teasing for a little while, it's Hinata's turn. May I point out, I am essentially a sarcastic version of Hinata with blonde hair and blue eyes. Her reactions to the suggestions in here are exactly what I would do. Tell me what you think. I'll need at least Five reveiws before I can post the next chapter. Oh, just a little FYI, I don't do lemons, I just allude. The name Akako means red child. It's what I named Kurenai's daughter, I think it fits.

* * *

"Kankuro, what happened to your face?" Kiba asked as the ten of them greeted us in front of the Sabaku mansion. Kankuro, half of his face still bruised and an eye swollen shut, just pointed at Sakura, who smirked.

Lee gave her a big hug, "An amazing hit, Sakura-chan! You really showed him your fires of youth!"

She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, which caused him to blush and stop talking. I giggled watching their interactions, my head against Naruto's shoulder. _They are so cute together. It is about time Sakura dumps Sasuke and gets with a guy who appreciates what an amazing and talented kunoichi she is._

Tenten stood in front of me, "Are you two lovebirds ready to get married?"

"I'm counting down by the hour," Naruto replied with a fox-like grin.

"We're getting married tomorrow at noon here at the Sabaku mansion," I told her, "Did you bring your formal clothes?"

"Of course, and I threatened Guy-sensei and Lee with death if they showed up wearing those terrible green suits to the wedding. I believe Ino and I are also going to go through with our plan to tie Lee up, wax his eyebrows, and cut his hair." I giggled again and rolled my eyes. Tenten had been making plans to do things like that since she was placed on Guy's team as a Genin. Currently, the success rate was zero.

Sakura overheard her, "Hey, Lee-kun looks just fine the way he is."

"Come inside before the day gets too hot," Gaara said, effectively stopping the insanity. We all entered into the mansion to continue catching up, but Kurenai caught my elbow, and led me into an empty room.

"Hinata," she began, "You know I think of you as a little sister. So, I need to have a talk with you about your duties as a wife."

"What do you mean? I already know how to cook and other such skills."

She gave me a smile, "Not those sorts of duties, Hinata." As she proceeded to explain, I could feel my face becoming redder and redder. Fortunately the talk only lasted about five minutes. If it had been longer, I think I would have died of embarrassment.

"Have you two decided about children?" she asked.

"We want to wait a year, to give us time to make Jonin," I told her, grateful for a topic which wasn't embarrassing at all. "We both want at least four children. He knows what it is like to grow up without a family, and I want to be a better parent than my father." _That won't be hard, _I bitterly thought to myself.

She smiled wistfully, and I could see she was thinking of her daughter, Akako, who stayed with Konohamaru's mother when Kurenai was away on missions. Akako would never know her father, Asuma, and I could tell it hurt Kurenai at times. "Any child you have will be lucky to have the two of you as parents. You both have such kind and loving hearts."

"Thanks, Kurenai-sensei," I whispered, giving her a hug. She returned it, tears streaming from her red eyes.

She quickly composed herself, "We'd better find the others. They'll be wondering where we disappeared off to. Anything in particular you want to do on your last day as Hinata Hyuga?"

"I want to go to bed as quickly as possible so I can become Hinata Uzumaki tomorrow," I replied as we left to find the others. She laughed at that.

The rest of the day seemed to drag on forever. Once we had eaten dinner, the kunoichi dragged me to my temporary bedroom, while the other shinobi kept Naruto and his clones from following me. Gaara ended up having to use his sand to stop him.

Once inside, Sakura announced, "Everyone, we are having a bachelorette party in honor of the first of us kunoichi to get married, Hinata!" When she caught the look on my face, she laughed. "Relax; we're just going to be having a spa night. You know, giving each other manicures, pedicures, and facials."

"Oh, okay, what will the guys be doing to Naruto?" I asked.

"I'm not sure what they have planned, but I have two spies there to let me know if they try anything… inappropriate," she grinned evilly.

"Let me guess, Lee and Sai?" Ino laughed, "Lee I can understand, but how did you get Sai on your side?"

"He's scared of me," Sakura replied. "What color do you want, Hinata?"

I picked a light lavender polish, "This will go perfectly with my wedding kimono. Which one do you want, Tenten?'

She picked a forest green, Sakura choose a bright red, Ino picked a dark blue-violet, and Temari choose a dark teal the same color as her eyes. I stayed quiet as we painted each others nails and toes.

Deciding to end my silence, Ino turned to me, "So, Hinata, you are the first of us to tie the knot. What is it about the knucklehead which first caught your attention? Spill or I'll use my Mind Transfer Jutsu to discover all the juicy details!"

I blushed, "Well, as we all know, I began crushing on him at the Academy. Even when he would mess up, especially on the Clone Jutsu, he would just laugh it off and try again. I could see in him a lot of traits I wanted to emulate, like his ability to keep getting up after getting knocked down again and again. He loves the people of Konoha and wants to help them, even thought they treated him unfairly throughout his life. I'm not blind to his weaknesses, but I accept them as part of who he is. He never intentionally hurts someone he is friends with, but if he does, he'll immediately apologize once he finds out." I blushed deeper, "He's also really good looking and a great kisser."

"Whoa, Hinata!" Tenten laughed, "Just one question, have you kissed anyone else?"

"Unless you count my family members on the cheek, no," I admitted, "I'm his first kiss as well, if you don't count that accidental one with Sasuke back at the Academy." We all grimaced and groaned in remembrance of that, and Temari mimed throwing up. "He says I'm much better, and he wants to kiss me, unlike Sasuke."

"Good for him," Ino said, "Ugh! That still makes me want to retch, even after all this time."

Sakura nodded, "You never were one of those Sasuke fan girls, were you, Hinata?"

"Nope, never. I always wondered what you all saw in him. He was smart, but also distant, cold, and a little cruel at times," I honestly replied. "I was glad I wasn't on his team."

Sakura shrugged, "You were smarter than the rest of us, Hinata. I admit Sasuke has gotten uglier as he aged. Naruto, on the other hand is a completely different story. You looked below the surface and focused on what was really important. Look at you now, five years after graduation; you are getting ready to marry your academy crush."

"Yeah, Hinata, you did luck out," Tenten laughed.

Temari nodded in agreement and handed me a wrapped gift. "Now that your nails are dry, you can open your presents."

I eagerly tore the wrapping paper and opened the box. Once I saw what was inside, I immediately turned bright red. "Er, thank you, Temari," I whispered.

"You had better wear it tomorrow night," she said, taking the box from my hands and showing the other girls the violet, short, very sexy lace and silk nightgown. I blushed harder, if that was even possible. My friends all enjoyed a laugh at my expense.

"Hinata, you're not worried about tomorrow night, are you?" Ino laughed.

"No, it's just…private, just between Naruto-kun and me," I replied, "It feels weird to have all of you talking about it."

"Proves one thing," Ino muttered to herself, "she is still a virgin. Not that is a bad thing." She handed me another box, which I opened with feelings of trepidation. It also was a sexy nightie, this one in dark blue silk which was long, but with a slit that would reach my hip.

Sakura gave me a camera and a photo album filled with blank pages. Tenten gave me a nice collection of bubble bath, body wash, lotion, and other such things.

A knock sounded on the door. "Have you started opening the presents yet?" Tsunade yelled from the other side of the door.

"Yes, but you can join us, Tsunade-sama!" Ino called out. Both Tsunade and Kurenai entered, also carrying wrapped gifts. When Tsunade saw what Temari and Ino had given me, she burst out laughing.

"I hope you got pictures of her face when she opened those," she told Sakura.

"I sure did!"

"Good. Here you go, Hinata." I took the gift with apprehension, expecting something along the same lines as Temari's and Ino's gifts. There was a pretty lavender nightgown and robe, but these were obviously to be used for sleeping, not seducing. There were also two official pieces of paper in the bow as well. I read them out loud.

"'I, Tsunade Senju, Godaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato, do hereby promise to Hinata Hyuga, soon to become Hinata Uzumaki (Namikaze) that I will be there when she and her husband confront her father, Hiashi Hyuga, to inform him of their marriage. I also promise to do whatsoever in my power to protect them from Hiashi.'"

I gave her a hug and whispered, "Thank you."

"Read the next one," she told me, brown eyes twinkling.

"'I, Tsunade Senju, Godaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato, do hereby grant permission for Naruto and Hinata Uzumaki (Namikaze), and any children which come from their union to call me 'Tsunade-baachan.' In return, I will act as grandmother to said children.'" I had omitted reading the name Namikaze when I read the promises out loud. "I thought you hated it when Naruto called you baachan?"

She shrugged, "Well, I never had any children of my own, so Kushina's son is the closest I can claim to an actual grandson. Not to mention, I know your kids will pick it up from him. If you can't beat them, join them." We all laughed at that.

Kurenai gave me her present. It was a few nice, framed photographs of the original Team Eight, the Rookie Nine during our first Chunin Exams, the Konoha Twelve with our senseis and Tsunade-sama, and a nice one of Naruto and me.

"Thank you," I told her, giving her a hug. She eagerly returned the embrace.

"Do you mind having your children call me Kurenai-bachan?" she whispered into my ear. "I want to be close with them as I am with you."

"Sure, Kurenai-sensei, I promise," I nodded, tears of joy flowing down my face.

"Okay, the first step for a beautiful, blushing bride is a good nights sleep with her best friends standing guard to make sure the groom doesn't try anything," Ino announced.

"Ino, it is only eight-thirty. We can have a little fun before we go to sleep. We just have to make sure Hinata sleeps tonight, considering she won't be getting much sleep tomorrow night," Tsunade teased. I blushed bright red again. Kurenai grabbed a box of chocolates, and began sharing them with us.


	8. Chapter 8

Author's note: Yeah, wedding day, and thank for all the reviews I got. I don't know much about Japanese weddings, despite living in the Orient for a year, so I kinda made it up as I went. Please read and review, I should ask for 10 before I update nect, considering that's almost how many I got this time only asking for five. Constructive criticism is appreciated, flames are not. And I am getting ready to write the confrontation scene with Hiashi. That will be interesting.

Disclaimer: Take it away, Hinata!

Hinata: A-a-alerya doesn't own N-n-naruto!

AL: Because if I did, the two of you would end up together, believe it! (Hinata blushes and passes out) I act like Hinata, why am I talking like Naruto? Oh, well, on with the story!!

* * *

"Good morning, Hinata!" Sakura sang out as she shook me awake.

"Go away, cherry blossom head. It's too early, what time is it?" I mumbled, pulling the covers over my head. I never was a morning person.

"It's eight thirty in the morning, sleepy head," Tenten replied. "Hinata, you need to get out of bed. You are getting married to the love of your life in just three and a half hours, so you need to get up and ready."

_Wait, I am getting married today. Oh, dang, I overslept! Some day this is, the bride sleeping in. Though I'm willing to bet the groom did also._ "We have breakfast ready, and once you are done, you need to bathe," Ino said.

I jumped out of bed, "What tornado let you in this morning, because I need to thank them. I can't believe I overslept on my own wedding day!" I grabbed some toast and a cup of chamomile tea off of the tray.

"That would be me," Temari said, laughing, "You forget, this is my house. It is only because of the good graces of the Sabaku family and the debt we owe your intended that you are getting married here." She was grinning the whole time, taking away the snobbish sound of her words.

I laughed as I took a sip of the calming tea. "And we are both very grateful for that, Temari." I quickly finished my breakfast and got into the bath. I felt like I was going to jump out of my skin from excitement and nerves, and my late start wasn't helping either. _I'm getting married today! Please, let this not be a dream. _I began to breathe deeply to calm myself, willing the hot water to relax my muscles.

"Hey, Hinata, are you almost done in there? We're burning daylight!" Ino yelled from the other side of the door.

"You can wait for me to finish up!" I called out, trying not to laugh. I eventually got out of the cooling water, ten minutes later. It had done what I had hoped, calming me down.

After I had dried off, I put on my underclothing and the robe Tsunade had given me the night before. "Finally," Sakura exclaimed as I left the bathroom, "We thought you had drowned in there."

"No, I was just taking my time, trying to calm down. Isn't it a bride's right to be nervous on her wedding day?" I asked as I pulled out my kimono and my mother's jewelry box that Hanabi had discovered. "Ino, do you think you can use these in my hair?" I pulled out the two delicate hairsticks decorated with amethysts and pearls.

"These are gorgeous! You bet I can use them. Sit down, Byakugan heiress, and let me get to work. Naruto will be the one to faint when he sees you once I'm finished. Hairdryer!" She snapped to Sakura.

At eleven forty-five, I looked at myself in the mirror. My hair was done up in three loops at the top of my head (A/N: Similar to Princess Kakyuu's hairstyle in Sailor Moon) with the two hairsticks glittering among the blue-black strands. My bangs and forelocks were straightened and left free. I was wearing earrings, a necklace, and two bracelets from my mother's jewelry box, and makeup. My wedding kimono was four layers, the top layer being pale lavender silk with whitish-silver trim and obi which perfectly matched my eyes. The other layers were a slightly darker violet, silver-gray, and a pale blue. The four kunoichi were also dressed in formal kimonos, just nothing as fancy as mine.

A gentle tap came from the door, "Who is it?" Tenten called out.

"It's just Kurenai-sensei and I, here to escort the bride," Neji called out. Tenten let them in.

Kurenai was wearing a scarlet kimono which matched her eyes, while Neji was wearing gray and black. "Nice to see that the substitute parents of the bride are here," Sakura said, "How's the groom doing? Please tell me he isn't wearing orange!"

"Don't worry, he isn't," Neji reassured us, "Tsunade-sama and Kakashi-sensei are escorting him right now. He's just a little nervous about Hinata changing her mind at the last minute."

I stepped forward; my head help high and meeting my cousin's gaze. My voice was still quiet, "That will not happen."

Neji smiled, "You look beautiful, Hinata-imotochan. Naruto will not be able to take his eyes off of you." We quickly embraced, and Kurenai gave me a hug.

"I could not be prouder of you, Hinata," she whispered. "Come; let us take you to your husband before we all ruin our makeup from crying."

The four kunoichi led the way, and Neji and Kurenai walked on either side of me. As we reached the main room of the mansion, everyone else was there waiting for us. Kakashi and Tsunade were standing on either side of Naruto. He was wearing a dark blue kimono, which looked very good on him. I began to blush as his eyes met mine, hardly able to believe this was happening.

Gaara, as the Kazekage of Sunagakure no Sato, was performing the ceremony. Kankuro had laughed about that until Gaara threatened to release his sand on him, which had quickly shut him up.

Neji and Kurenai escorted me until I faced Naruto, and then all four 'parents' stepped back from us. We took each others hands in preparation of the ceremony. Naruto was grinning like all of his dreams had come true, and I was smiling and blushing at the same time, unable to keep the girls' teasing from last night out of my head. Gaara led us in the traditional vows used in Fire country, and finally we drank from the same bowl of sake, signifying the joining of our lives.

"I now present to you Naruto and Hinata Uzumaki," Gaara proclaimed, signaling the end of the ceremony and the beginning of the celebrations.

Neji came up to us, "I warned you when you began dating Hinata, Naruto, that if you did anything to hurt my cousin, I would make you regret it. Well, you haven't. I have never seen her so happy. I am proud to call you cousin." He gripped Naruto's hand in a firm handclasp.

"Er, thanks, Neji," Naruto awkwardly replied, blushing.

"You are no longer alone," I whispered to him after Neji had left us, "You have a family now, Naruto-kun. I am your family, and will never leave you, I promise."

He smiled tenderly at me, "Thank you, Hinata-hime. I love you."

"And I love you. Just don't forget it." I smiled at him and gave him a kiss.

A bright flash broke the moment. Sakura was armed and ready with a camera, and had caught the moment between us. I giggled as Naruto rolled his eyes.

"It's time to eat!" Kankuro yelled. Kiba and Akamaru led the way to the dining area. Talk and stories flowed as freely around the table as the food and drink did. (No sake or alcohol allowed, we didn't want to risk Lee's Drunken Fist at the wedding.) Kiba and Shino were rather entertaining (at least Kiba was) recalling how I used to faint it I ever got within a foot of Naruto. Tsunade reminisced about the bet she had made with Naruto about him learning the Rasengan, which caused her to become the Hokage. Kakashi told of the first bell test he had given Team Seven, while Sakura told of the second one, in which both she and Naruto had succeeded in getting the bells. Neji recalled the matches he had fought against us during the first Chunin Exams, and that he had noticed that we inspired each other. Shikamaru, Chouji, and Ino shared some of Naruto's pranks from the Academy.

Once we had all finished eating and talking, we began to break up into small groups. I kept a hold of my husband's hand, still feeling as though I was in a dream. I kept glancing at the ring on my left hand, reminding myself that this was no dream, but reality.

"You look beautiful, Hinata-hime," Naruto whispered, unable to keep his eyes off of me.

I blushed deeply, "Thank you. You look very handsome, Naruto-kun." _Why can't I stop blushing? Because you know you want to be alone with him a bedroom right now, without this restricting kimono on! _"Can we leave before we get embarrassed any further?"

He gave me one of his fox-like grins, "Do you want to leave?" causing my blush to deepen. He began to laugh, "Not yet, I want to have a chance to dance with you. Besides, they say they all brought gifts for us."

"As long as they don't give us the same sort of things Ino and Temari gave me last night," I replied.

His eyes lit up with curiosity, "What did they give you?"

I decided to stop being embarrassed. _We're married, for crying out loud. It's perfectly okay to feel like this, and to want to be intimate with him. I have got to get over these inhibitions._ I gave him a smile, "You'll find out tonight." I still blushed, but his was darker than mine.

"Come on, you two," Kakashi called out, "We're not going to let you two sneak away this early."

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto groaned.

"Hey, I want a dance with the bride, also. I'm allowed to as the acting father of the groom," he shrugged.

I pulled lightly at Naruto's hand, "Let's go, because if we leave right now, Kiba and Akamaru will track us down and drag us back." _Too bad, because I want to be alone with you right now. Patience, Hinata!_ He grimaced at the thought, and we followed everyone into the main room again.

The presents were given (nothing embarrassing, thank goodness), and I danced with everyone, even Gaara, and Kiba threatened Naruto once more for good measure.

Once he got away, he took my hand and whispered in my ear, "Shall we get out of here, Hinata-hime?"

"Let's go," I replied, trying to hide my blush and impatience.

Temari stopped us at the door. "Here is your wedding present from my brothers, because they have no taste what so ever. You two will be staying in a hotel suite the rest of your time here. We figured that you two deserve some time to yourselves, away from your teammates, your slightly perverted sensei…"

"He's nothing compared to Ero-sennin," Naruto interrupted.

"…And my slightly crazy family. Kankuro and Gaara are paying for everything. Enjoy the peace and quiet, because I know there will be the devil to pay when you return to Konoha and confront Hinata's family. Good luck and congratulations, both of you."

Naruto accepted the key and packed bags from Temari and we high tailed it away from the Sabaku mansion before anyone could stop us.

Once we were checked into the hotel and shown our suite, my nerves started again. _I've wanted to jump him all day, and now is when I get shy? My timing sucks._

"Naruto-kun?" I asked, trying not to stutter, "This kimono is a little uncomfortable. Could you help me get out of it?"

He knew exactly what I meant. Temari was correct in saying there would be hell to pay from my family, but this time was just for the two of us, and that's what was important. We quickly helped each other out of the formal wear and made our way to the bed, enjoying every second of it.


	9. Chapter 9

Author's Note: I know I said ten reviews, but I currently have gotten seven, and I decided to go ahead early. Be warned, next time it will be ten reviews, no ifs, ands, or buts. I want to thank all those who have reviewed: Rose Tiger, Chewie Cookies, Wunmiii, xxlil-laurenxx, zentary, CrimsonDeath1, v-kolt, oceanmoon, Hatake Tsughi, mopman09, Hina the half heart, myth buster, UnitedRevival27, narutos vixen, Gravity the Wizard, and Tenshi Namikaze. Wow, that's a lot of people. Thank you all so much for your comments, and please, keep them coming. that is half the reason why I am having so much fun writing this story.

Alerya: Hmmm, who should do my disclaimer this time?

(Tsunade steals a hair from Alerya) Alerya: What was that for?

Tsunade: I need to check your DNA, you are showing too many similarities to Naruto and Hinata.

Alerya: I-I-I'm not r-r-r-related to them! (Tsunade glares at her) O-o-o-okay, I'll let you check if you'll give the disclaimer.

Tsunade: As the Godaime Hokage, I proclaim that Alerya doesn't own Naruto!

Alerya: Arigato, Baachan. (Runs for it)

* * *

"I hope those ten did what I asked," Tsunade grumbled as we leapt through the trees, heading back to Konoha. It was twilight, and we were still about an hour away from the village.

"Did what?" Sai asked.

"The reason I made Naruto give his spare key to Kurenai," she laughed.

"They were supposed to renovate his apartment as a present for the newlyweds," Sakura added, glancing back to where Naruto and I were holding hands.

"I don't care what they did to it, as long as they got rid of all the bugs," Naruto muttered. I laughed at that, well aware of the state of his apartment.

"I think Shino can take care of them," Kakashi called out.

_He can do that, and I would bet he would see if there were any interesting ones while he was at it,_ I thought, knowing my old teammate well. It was nice to be heading back home, thought I regretted leaving Suna. Naruto and I got to ignore the potential problems that we would soon face there, and it was now time to meet them head on. The six weeks we had spent there had been pure bliss. We had spent a few hours a day training and seeing the village, but most of our time was spent in the privacy of our hotel suite, strengthening our bond as a couple. I blushed as I remembered some of the things we had done, and couldn't deny the fact that half the reason I wanted to get home was so we could do them again.

Naruto noticed my blush in the fading light, "What is it, Hinata?"

"I just really want to get to our home as quickly as possible," I replied, and paused long enough to give him a passionate kiss.

"Knock it off. Can't you two go a full day without having sex?" Sakura demanded.

"We can, we've currently gone for two and a half days because we've been stuck traveling with you guys," Naruto replied, his arm wrapped around my waist.

"Well, once we get back to Konoha, you can spend the whole night in bed together. We just need to get there first," Tsunade replied. We both sighed and resumed our travels.

When we finally reached the gates, the guards let us in without any of the usual questions reserved for people trying to enter after nightfall. (There are advantages traveling with the Hokage, the only problem is keeping her out of gambling halls.) Once we were inside, we all split for our separate homes. The guards saw me leave with Sakura, supposedly because I was going to crash at her house so I wouldn't disturb my clan. Once out of sight of the guards, I left her and met up with Naruto a few streets over.

Once we had arrived at his, now our, apartment, Naruto cautiously opened the door and stared in shock. "What did they do to this place?"

I stuck my head over his shoulder and gasped. The walls were freshly painted, the old, beaten down furniture had been replaced, and it was completely clean! I admit, I love Naruto, but he is a slob. I didn't think it was possible to get his apartment this clean!

"It looks nice," I whispered, tempted to use my Byakugan and see if the roaches had also been taken care of.

"It's never looked this good, not even when I moved in," Naruto murmured, "They did an amazing job!"

"Let's see the rest!" I exclaimed, ducking underneath his arm and entering the apartment. The kitchen had better appliances now, and was no longer only stocked with instant ramen. This was a place I could cook in, though Naruto groaned at all of the vegetables in the refrigerator. The study area was organized, and there were some more scrolls added to the collection. I ended up having to drag my husband away from them; otherwise he would have been absorbed in them the rest of the night.

Finally, we entered the bedroom and gasped in pleased surprise. There was now a dresser big enough for a couple, and a queen-sized bed, with nice sheets, pillows, and a matching bedspread. I opened one of the drawers and was shocked to find my clothes inside. _Neji must have broken into my room and brought my things over._

"Wow, this place is amazing," Naruto quietly said, "It finally feels like a home. Look, Hinata!" He was pointing at the wall opposite the window. There were pictures of our Genin squads, our Chunin teams, one with the Konoha Twelve, our senseis, Tsunade, and the Sand Siblings which had been taken at our wedding, and finally one of the two of us at our wedding. "It's all of our precious people, our true family."

"The ones that act like our family, even if we don't share blood with all of them," I whispered, agreeing with what he said. I yawned abruptly, "Shall we get some rest? I know we'll need it for tomorrow." I went to my bag and grabbed my toiletries and a nightdress, which happened to be the one Tsunade had given me. As I went to shower, Naruto saw what I held.

"Aw, I like the other purple one better," he said, and began laughing at the look on my face.

"I would wear that one, except it needs to be washed," I replied, giving him a wink, rushed into the bathroom and locked the door so I could shower and not get distracted.

Once I was done, I left so he could also use the shower, "That wasn't funny, Hinata," he growled.

"Remember what happened last time we showered together?" I replied, "I would like to be able to break in our new bed tonight, not spend it in the bathroom. Hurry up, Naruto-kun, I promise I'll be waiting for you."

As he was showering, I brushed out my hair to let it air dry, and began unpacking our clothes so we could wash them the next day. Abruptly, two strong arms wrapped around my waist, and Naruto began kissing and nibbling my neck. "Remember your promise, my hime?"

"Of course," I replied, feeling my desire rise, "and I always keep my promises." He dragged me to the bed, much to my pleasure.

The next morning, I was woken by sunlight shining in the window. Naruto was still asleep, holding me protectively to his chest. I smiled as I watched him sleep, knowing the reason for his desire to never let me go. He finally had a family, and refused to lose me. I gently kissed his forehead, each of his whisker marks, his nose, and finally his lips. He smiled, but remained asleep. I was content just to watch him, and marvel again at all that he had overcome throughout his life. My life wasn't easy by any means, but it was nothing compared to what he had gone through. _I should have been there for him sooner, but I can't change the past. I'm here for him now, and no one, not even my father will change that._

A sudden knocking on the door stopped my quiet introspection, and woke Naruto up. "Huh, Hinata-hime, who is it?" he sleepily asked.

_Please, let it not be my father!_ "Byakugan," I whispered, and breathed a sigh of relief as I was able to see who it was. I quickly deactivated my bloodline, "It's just Kakashi-sensei, Sakura, and Sai." I got out of bed, found my nightdress and robe, put them on, and quickly opened the door.

"Good morning, Hinata," Kakashi said, his nose once again in his book. "Did you forget that Tsunade-sama wants us to report to her in ten minutes?"

"So we'll be a little late," I said, shrugging, "Aren't you always late, Kakashi-sensei?"

"Tsunade threatened that if I show up late to meet with her one more time, she'll burn my books and ban them from Konoha," he replied, "so hurry up, please!"

"Naruto-kun," I called out, "Take your time!"

Kakashi sweat-dropped and crashed onto the floor. Sakura, Sai, Naruto, and I all nearly died of laughter.

We ended up showing up at the Hokage's office just five minutes late. As we entered, Kakashi pointed at the two of us, "It's their fault!"

"This is the closest to on time I have ever seen from you, Kakashi," Tsunade replied. "Here is your pay for your recent mission. I think it was successful, considering I got back here safely." She winked at Naruto and me, the real reason behind the mission. "Do you like your renovated apartment, Naruto?"

"Believe it! It didn't look that good when I first moved in."

Right then, our meeting was interrupted by an irate clan head. "I see my daughter is finally home, Hokage-sama. Are you finished with her? I need to take her back home so she can prepare for her wedding," my father demanded.

"Sai, Sakura, please leave us. Kakashi, I would like you to stay to support your students," Tsunade replied, her hard brown eyes locked with my father's pale, pupil-less ones. Sai and Sakura left, and Naruto gently squeezed my hand, giving my support.

_I now know I have the heart and soul of a shinobi, it is time to inform my father of that fact._ I stepped forward, meeting my father's terrifying gaze, and spoke, my quiet voice laced with the strength of steel, "I will not be marrying Takahiro, Father."

"What did you say?"

"I will not be marrying Takahiro, Father. I find him to be a stuck up jerk, and a rather incompetent shinobi. Neji, Hanabi, and I could all easily defeat him. That man will never be my husband." I refused to sound intimidated. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Naruto nodding at me, giving me support. This, we both knew, was my battle, and he had to let me fight it, despite his instincts to do otherwise.

"You dare to go against the wishes of your family and clan?" he thundered. "I could disown you for this, Hinata."

"I am still a loyal Konoha shinobi," I replied, "According to clan law; I can only be disowned if I betray my family, my clan, and my village. The most you can do is disinherit me, which I do not care about. There is another clan law, also found in Konoha law, which prohibits me from marrying Takahiro."

"Why can't you marry him? I could force you, by branding you with the curse seal."

"Because a woman isn't allowed to have more than one husband," I replied, and held up my left hand for him to see the wedding rings thereon. "My name isn't Hinata Hyuga, it is Hinata Uzumaki. I am married to Naruto, the only man I will love."

He stared at me in shock for a moment, and turned to Naruto. "How dare you turn my daughter against her clan, demon? Do you believe that you are worthy of her, you who has no name, no clan, no resources! All you have to your name is the Kyuubi no Kitsune!" He dropped into a Gentle fist stance, and prepared to aim a blow at my husband.

"Naruto, duck!" I yelled, and jumped in between the two of them. "Kaiten!" I yelled, and managed to throw my father against the side of the office with my Rotation.

"You got it, Hinata-hime," Naruto breathed, amazed that I had finally mastered the jutsu.

"I had to protect you," I replied, "and I love you, and will not see you hurt." I helped him up, and saw Hiashi groggily get back to his feet. He lunged toward us again, but was stopped by a punch to the stomach by Tsunade, which sent him crashing through the wall. She then marched through the hole, picked him up, and set him down in a chair after she righted it.

"Kakashi, please help Hinata and Naruto pick up this mess and pay attention." She then turned to Hiashi, "Listen up and shut up, Hiashi Hyuga. Currently I don't care about your status as a clan head right now. All I see is a man who attacked one of my shinobi for no good reason. By the way, you are wrong about Naruto." She began to smirk.

"What do you mean?" he muttered.

"You were wrong about Naruto's background. His parents were both strong and talented shinobi of this village. Their identity was kept from him to keep him safe from their enemies."

Both Hiashi and Kakashi gave Naruto a double take. "Who are they?"

"His mother is Kushina Uzumaki, the Red Whirlpool, and Katana Mistress of the Hidden Leaf. If Kushina is his mother, then who do you think his father is?"

Kakashi stared at Naruto in shock for a moment, and then fell over in a dead faint.

Hiashi was floored. "Are you saying that he is…" he gulped and tried again, "My daughter's husband is the son and heir of Minato Namikaze?"

"Yes, he is. I even have the documents to prove it," Tsunade smiled evilly, "The Hyuga heiress eloped with the Namikaze heir. Could you have beaten that with any other arrangement?"

"When I am ready, we will take my father's name," Naruto announced, holding me close to him now that we had finished clearing up the mess my rotation caused. "But for right now, I'm comfortable being Naruto Uzumaki."

"And I'm perfectly happy as Hinata Uzumaki. I don't care about the last name, as long as it belongs to Naruto," I replied to Hiashi, wrapping my arm around Naruto's waist, daring him to try to tear us apart. He just stared at us, shocked into silence.

Kakashi regained consciousness, and asked, "Naruto, are you really Minato-sensei and Kushina-san's son?"

"Yes, I am. It explains why I was used as the container for the Kyuubi. My dad wouldn't ask another parent to make a sacrifice he wasn't willing to make himself."

Kakashi jumped up and caught Naruto in a tight embrace, "You have no idea how miraculous this is! A part of my sensei is alive in one of my students! If you want me to, I can tell you so much about your parents."

"I would like to know more about them. All Tsunade-baachan's told me is than I look like my father, but act like my mother," Naruto managed to mumble out.

"Er, Kakashi-sensei, can you let him go? I think you're suffocating him," I pointed out, noticing the color of my husband's face.

"Oh, I am sorry, Naruto. I know Kushina would have loved Hinata, one of her best friends was Hitomi Hyuga, Hinata's mother."

"They were best friends," Tsunade confirmed, "I just have one question for you, Kakashi. How the heck did you manage to overlook Naruto's resemblance to Minato? If it wasn't for the marks, he could be his clone!"

"Because we were all told Kushina had died in childbirth, and everyone assumed her child perished with her," Hiashi managed to find his voice. "Everyone, not just Kakashi, overlooked Naruto's resemblance to the Yondaime, or assumed it was another effect of Minato giving his life to seal the Kyuubi into Naruto." He turned and stared at the two of us, "Hinata, you are now Namikaze, not Hyuga, so the council and I have no say over you anymore. They will want to seal you, but cannot now. I will prevent that, in honor of my old friends, Minato and Kushina Namikaze."

"Don't forget Hitomi," Tsunade murmured, "You know what she would do to you for this if she was still alive. Maybe I should take care of it in her place. What do you think?"

Hiashi paled in fright. "I don't even want to think about it."

* * *

Author's note, Take 2: I find the funny disclaimers amusing, and I spent a lot of time writing and perfecting this chapter. Please don't forget the little green button at the bottom and telll me what you think. Remember, Naruto and Hinata still have to face the Hyuga clan elders. Will Hiashi stand by his word?


	10. Chapter 10

Author's note: I received ten reviews, so here is the next chapter! Time to confront the clan elders, so what is in store for our favorite couple? Who will lose their temper first, Naruto or Hinata? Thanks to everyone who has reviewed! Yeah, I love getting those. On with the story. Just so you know, same rules apply. I must receive ten reviews before i can post the next chapter, so hit the little green button at the bottom and tell me what you think! Constructive criticism allowed, flames are not. Jia You!

Disclaimer: (Alerya is sitting on a bench. Sakura Finds her.)

Sakura: Are you the girl Tsunade-shisho is running the DNA Test on?

Alerya: Yes, for some odd reason, she thinks I'm related to Naruto and Hinata, because I act and look to much like them. Personally, I think she's been hitting the sake a little too much lately.

Sakura: I don't know, I can see a resemblance.

Alerya: Will you people stop thinking crazy things like that? Hey, can you help me give the disclaimer?

Sakura: Sure. Alerya doesn't own anything to do with Naruto! (Whispers) Will Sasuke and I get together in this fic?

Alerya: Not on your life! Sasuke is going to be a very lonely teme, who we won't see that much of, just because I don't like him!

Sakura: How could you be so cruel to poor Sasuke-kun?

Alerya: How could you bee so dumb and blind to his true nature?

* * *

I stood before the Hyuga clan elders, hand in hand with my husband, and my father standing in front of us, having just informed the elders of my elopement with the village pariah.

Norio Hyuga, the father of the jilted Takahiro, was furious, "Your daughter has eloped with the Kyuubi! How can you take it so calmly? She must be punished according to clan law, to be branded with the Caged Bird Seal and disowned from the clan!"

Hiashi met his gaze squarely, "My daughter eloped with the Jinchuriki holding the Kyuubi no Kitsune prisoner, who just happens to be a strong and loyal Konoha shinobi. I cannot allow the council to brand her with the seal. Since the day of her marriage to Naruto Uzumaki, she is no longer under our jurisdiction. She is an Uzumaki now, not a Hyuga."

"Do you still claim her as your heir, Hiashi?"

He gave me a cold glance, "She may choose her replacement now, but she is no longer the clan heiress. I am also reducing her inheritance by half, and her dowry as well. She will still receive those, because she is still my blood and loyal to Konoha, meaning, according to clan law, we cannot disown her."

Masato Hyuga, a great-uncle of mine and the oldest of the clan elders present, spoke up, "Hiashi speaks the truth. Since Hinata is still a loyal Konoha kunoichi, she cannot be disowned, but we will shun her, and refuse to further school her in our clan techniques. The other punishments Hiashi has decreed are also sufficient. Hinata has lost her role as the clan heiress, and will only receive half of her dowry and inheritance."

Norio was furious. "Those are not sufficient for a betrayal of this magnitude! Hiashi, how dare you condone your daughter's rebellious actions by giving her a slap on the wrists!" he thundered, "Hinata must receive the seal as a punishment for joining herself to that demon!"

_I've had enough of the demon crap!_ "Naruto isn't a demon! He is a Jinchuriki, the one holding the Kyuubi prisoner, or did that fact not register into your brain? How dare you say that! It was done to him when he was a newborn, he didn't have any choice in the matter. He hasn't done anything to deserve your scorn and hatred! You should be giving him respect, because any other shinobi would have betrayed this village if they had to put up with what the villagers have put him through all of his life."

Norio scoffed, "He should have been killed to keep the village safe! It is only because of the Sandaime's whim that demon was allowed to live."

Naruto stayed at my side, keeping quiet despite the insults that my family members were throwing at him. He had told me that he was used to it, and it really didn't bother him as much anymore, but it was making me furious. "Oh, shut up!" I snapped at him.

"Amazing," Kaede Hyuga, a female elder, whispered, "she is finally acting like the clan heiress. Where has this side of Hinata been hiding all of these years?"

_She was almost killed because of all of you,_ I thought, not bothering to answer her question.

Norio was preparing another attack. "If you don't leave the demon, and Hiashi won't let us brand you, we could always make sure that no children ever result from your union," he threatened, his gaze fixed on Naruto. We both knew what he was insinuating.

That did it. I completely lost it. "I told you to shut up!" I dropped into my Juuken stance, activated my Byakugan, focused my chakra, and hit Norio square in the face. He flew backward and dropped unconscious, with a severely broken nose, maxilla, and zygomae, and missing several teeth. Every elder and Hiashi were staring at me in shock. Naruto was grinning, and took me into his arms.

"Calm down, Hinata-hime," he whispered into my ear, "But it was worth all the insults to see you hit that baka."

"You're my husband, Naruto-kun," I replied, making sure my voice was loud enough everyone in the room could hear me, "If they insult, dishonor, or threaten to castrate you, they will have to deal with me." I paused, and blushed bright red, "That was really me who hit him? It felt like it was someone else, I was so furious." Naruto just held me tighter, helping me with the shock of realizing what I had just done.

A rare smile of amusement graced Hiashi's face. "Norio is the elder who sealed Neji. Good for you, Hinata," he whispered to me. He then addressed the council again, "Shall we do as I proposed, and promise not to use the seal on those our clan no longer has claim on, Hinata and her future children?" The council mutely nodded, some stealing glances at me. I was my usual quiet self again, but I knew they could now see the strength in me, which all of them had dismissed before. My strength was different than what their definition was, and now they were finally seeing it.

Masato declared, "I believe I speak for all of the clan elders when I say we agree with your decision, Hiashi. You are the clan head, and Hinata is your firstborn, so you should be the one with the final say on her punishment. Hinata, as your final act as the clan heiress, who shall be your successor?"

I paused for a moment and asked, "Just one question. Is there a known way to remove the seal from the Branch Family members without destroying their Byakugan?"

"Not that we know of," Tatsuya Hyuga, a Branch Family representative, spoke up. "Why?"

"Because I want to name my cousin Neji Hyuga as heir in my place, but as long as he wears the seal, I cannot." Regret and sadness tinged my voice. Neji was the only one I wanted to replace me, but with the Caged Bird seal on his head, the council had too much control over him.

Hiashi mused, "If there was such a removal designed, Neji could be the heir. I know an old friend of mine, who was quite the seal expert, was looking into designing a seal removal. Perhaps, Hinata, if you could look into his notes, you might figure out how to do it. If there is no removal designed before my death, Hanabi will take my place as head, but if you do design a workable removal before then, Neji will take my place. Do you agree?"

"That seems fair," I replied. Hiashi dismissed the council, and suddenly Neji and Hanabi joined us in the room.

"That was amazing, Neechan!" Hanabi said, "How you made Norio-sama fly backwards! You proved them all wrong about you."

Naruto smiled and gave me a quick kiss, "Yes, you did, Hinata. You showed them your strength, it was amazing."

"Thank you, Naruto-kun," I replied, blushing from his praise.

Neji spoke up, "Did you mean that, Hinata-chan? You wish for me to take your place as the clan heir?"

"Yes, but first I need to design a removal for the Caged Bird," I replied, "What do I know about Fuuinjutsu? This will take a while."

He gave me a small smile, "If anyone can remove it safely, I know you can, Imotochan."

"And I'll help," Naruto said, "Ero-sennin was a seal master, and taught me a few things. It's not my strong point, but I'll help you all I can."

"Thank you, all of you," I replied, "Hanabi, I'm sorry about not naming you my replacement, but I truly think Neji is the best for the job."

"Its okay, Hinata-chan. I really don't want to be clan head anyway. Neji can deal with the stuffed shirts known as the elders better than me, considering he is one himself," she replied with a mischievous grin toward our cousin. Neji, predictably, protested that statement.

"Let's get going before they start a full-on Juuken battle," Naruto whispered into my ear. We quickly left the clan compound, and headed back to our little apartment, talking quietly about our encounter with the clan elders, and how, before the meeting, Hiashi complained that it made his job that much harder by us forbidding him to tell the elders Naruto's true name. It was Naruto's decision to inform everyone who he truly was, and that time wasn't now.

Sakura and Sai were sitting in front of the door, waiting for us to return. "Well, how did it go? How did Hiashi-sama react?" Sakura demanded.

"He was furious and tried to attack me, but Hinata was able to stop him. Then Tsunade-baachan punched him through a wall, and we were able to talk some sense into him. We just got back from meeting with the Hyuga clan elders, who have promised not to seal Hinata or any of our descendants," Naruto reported, trying not to grin. "Hinata was amazing, she stood up to all of them, and even hit one on the face when he insulted me too many times."

"Actually, it was because he threatened to castrate him," I quietly corrected.

"Good for you, Hinata, and good for you, Naruto, for letting her fight her own battles!" Sakura cheered.

"We have been waiting to inform you both that we will begin training for our Jonin trials next week. Tsunade-sama also wants to see Hinata tomorrow morning. She says that she has something which belongs to her," Sai reported, "Other than that, you two have the rest of the week off. Enjoy it, Kitsune and Princess." Sai had finally decided to give people decent nicknames a few months ago, much to our relief. Naruto had been getting really sick of his nickname, and admitted Kitsune was better.

"We plan to," I replied, blushing.

Sakura groaned, "I think I'm going to be sick! Don't say or suggest anything like that with me around. The thought of the two of you…" she trailed off.

I giggled at her embarrassment, "We are newlyweds, Sakura. What do you expect us to do with our private time?"

"Ahhh! Be quiet! I'm not listening!" she cried out as she left. Sai sighed, but followed her.

Naruto was staring at me with raised eyebrows, "Hinata, I think I have corrupted you."

I giggled again, "No, you didn't. She just jumped to conclusions. I didn't say anything obvious."

He laughed as he unlocked the door and went inside. "What if her conclusions were correct?"

"She won't know, but we will," I replied, taking his hand as he locked the door, heading straight for the bedroom.

The next morning, we were taking our time to get out of bed. "Why does Baachan want to see you?" Naruto asked, one hand lazily playing with my long hair.

"Sai said she had something that belongs to me," I replied, a little puzzled, my head resting on his shoulder. "I don't know what she meant. All my things are here."

"Maybe it's something she wants to give you," he murmured, "What time do you have to be there?"

"Ten-thirty, so in an hour," I replied, "We'd better start getting ready. Do you want to do some one-on-one training once I get done meeting with the Hokage?"

'We'll first need to see Iruka-sensei, and go to Ichiraku ramen. I need to introduce my wife to Teuchi and Ayame." I laughed at that and reluctantly left his embrace as I rolled out of bed.

Right at ten-thirty, we were at the Hokage's office, freshly showered and dressed, complete with our Hitai-ites and ninja gear.

"She's waiting for you, Hinata," Sakura said, "Naruto, you have to wait outside." He nodded and took a chair while I entered the office.

Tsunade was standing in front of her desk, holding a sheathed katana. The sheath was beautiful, a glossy black inlaid with silver and gold designs. The hilt matched the sheath. "This is yours, Hinata Hyuga-Namikaze," she said.

I stared at the elegant weapon, "I don't even know how to use a katana, Tsunade-sama. How can this be mine?"

She smiled, "It has chosen you as its wielder, and you have proven yourself worthy of the katana." I was lost and it showed on my face. "Have you ever heard of the katanas of Uzugakure?"

"The Whirlpool Katanas? I remember my mother telling me about them once, a long time ago. Don't the blades have the ability to conduct chakra?"

"Yes, that is one of their characteristics. These blades were forged in what became the Hidden Whirlpool Village almost three centuries ago. The katanas were the village's most precious resource. They were passed down from one generation to the next, but the katanas made the choice, not their wielders."

She gave me the sheathed katana. "How do they choose? How did they come here to Konoha, if they were Uzu's most precious resource?"

"I'm not sure how they choose, but I do know how they came here. It's an interesting story, so pull up a chair and I'll tell you."

* * *

EVIL CLIFFHANGER JUTSU! What is it about these weapons? And yes, for those of you who recognized the village's name, they are connected to Kushina. Remember, Ten reviews before you can find out! Thank you for reading, now review please!


	11. Chapter 11

Author's note: Maybe I should have upped the number of reviews before I posted this next chapter. Here is the story of the Uzugakure Katanas. I haven't told everything about the katanas and their abilities, we'll find out more as the story progresses. As for why there are so few wielders, well, it just took them a long time to adjust to Konoha. Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed! I was shocked by the response recieved from my last chapter. Let's try for Fifteen reviews this time. Please tell me what you think!

Disclaimer: (Alerya is eating some ramen as Ichiraku's)

Alerya: I have to hide from Sakura because she is mad that I called Sasuke a teme, but that was one of the nicer thing I could have called him.

Naruto: Hey, aren't you the girl that Baachan thinks is related to me?

Alerya: Yes, though I'm not sure why. Can you help me with the disclaimer? You can have the rest of my ramen (Notices a very PO'd Sakura looking around) I need to hide from the Pink Banshee!

Naruto: Sure! Alerya doesn't own anything to do with me! (Starts eating the rest of Alerya's ramen)

Alerya: (whipers as she runs and hides) Thanks, and Naruto, ask Hinata out! I know she'll be much nicer to you than Sakura.

* * *

"About thirty-three years ago, Uzugakure was attacked by the shinobi from Iwagakure. Uzu was a small village, and they had no chance against the Iwas. The village leader knew this, and when their spies confirmed that an attack was inevitable, he knew he had to do something to prevent the Iwas from capturing their katanas. He called his wife and youngest child, an eight-year-old girl, ordered them to gather all forty-five katanas, and escape before the Iwas reached Uzu. All the wielders, even the leader and his eldest son and daughter, gave their katanas to the two women, who left that night. They ended up facing the Iwa shinobi without their weapons, and denied them their primary goal. Uzugakure was annihilated that day, but the two women and the katanas were safe and out of the hands of the Iwas. Two weeks after the destruction of Uzu, the mother was leading her daughter into the Land of Fire, toward Konoha. The mother knew that Konoha was Iwa's greatest enemy, and knew they would be welcomed, especially with the gift of the Uzu katanas. Unfortunately, they ran afoul of a squad of Iwa shinobi that was patrolling Earth's border with Fire. The leader recognized the mother as an Uzu kunoichi and the weapons she and her daughter were carrying. Most were sealed into scrolls, but each of them were carrying two katanas. He ordered the attack, and the mother, Sayuri, was killed. The girl drew one of the katanas she was carrying, which had belonged to a favorite aunt. She knew that she hadn't been chosen as a wielder yet, but had no other way to fight the men who had helped destroy her home and killed her family. She wouldn't allow them to steal her village's legacy and get away with the death of her family and friends. As she drew the blade, it cut her palm, realizing the blade had regained its shine and keen edge, which it had lost the day her aunt was killed. It meant the katana had chosen her as its next wielder, and she was worthy. She fought them; trying to keep them at away from her mother's body and the weapons she had given her life to protect, and doing a very good job for an eight-year-old only halfway through her Academy training."

I gasped, tears running down my face and falling onto the sheath of the precious Uzu katana. "So strong, at such a young age. How did she do it? That's amazing," I whispered.

"She was," Tsunade replied before continuing the story. "I was stuck on a patrol with Jiraiya, and trying to keep myself from killing him, when we overheard the sounds of a fight. We rushed to the scene, and were stunned to find four Iwa ninja attacking a small, red-headed girl wielding a four foot long katana. She killed one of them as Jiraiya and I jumped in to help. We quickly defeated them, and I went to heal the girl's injuries, but she turned her blade against us and demanded to know who we were. I explained that we were two of the Sannin from Konohagakure. Hearing that she stood tall, despite her exhaustion and wounds, and announced, 'I am Kushina, youngest child of Kaito and Sayuri Uzumaki, and the last of the shinobi of Uzugakure. I have a gift for your Hokage. Will you bring me to him?' I began laughing, liking the girl immediately. She knew her mind and wasn't afraid to speak out. I tended her wounds as Jiraiya buried her mother, after Kushina had retrieved the weapons Sayuri was carrying. Once she was healed, we escorted her to Konoha. She explained what had happened to her village to Sarutobi-sensei, and presented him with forty-four Uzu katanas. She joined the academy, and graduated as the top kunoichi in her class two tears later at the age of ten. I was her Jonin instructor when she was a Genin. With her red hair, blazing fast speed, skilled katana, and status as the last Uzu ninja, even though she wore the Leaf hitai-ite, she was given the names Red Whirlpool and Katana Mistress of the Hidden Leaf. That was because everyone had called the Uzu ninja 'The Uzu Katana Masters.'"

"It was Naruto's mother?" I gasped, "So, that is where he gets his strength from."

"Yes, a good portion of it comes from Kushina. He also got it from Minato, but I look at him and can see Kushina in his personality. Hinata, when Kushina decided to stand and protect her village's legacy, she proved herself worthy to become a wielder. You are the second Konoha ninja to be proven worthy. The first was Kakashi Hatake, when he chose his teammates over the mission. As you know, that decision has shaped his life."

"I proved myself when I chose Naruto over the wishes and expectations of my family, and stuck with it, despite the consequences," I whispered, "For so long, I backed down, and didn't stand up to them, even when I thought they were wrong. I finally did, and am now a worthy wielder." I looked Tsunade in the eye as I made that last statement.

"Draw your blade, Hinata Hyuga-Namikaze, so your katana will know whose blood it must never taste again." I did, and cut my thumb on the keen edge. The sheath and hilt turned a dark bluish-violet, shocking me. "The color change means it is now bonded to you. These katanas aren't conscious, but there is something about them that make them so special. They can never be broken, can conduct a person's chakra, and once a wielder as been proven worthy, they will only lose their shine and keen edge when their wielder dies or if they betray their village. Kushina once attributed that to an old legend from Uzu, about how a Jinchuriki helped in forging the katanas, giving them their unique characteristics. Kakashi has agreed to instruct you in the way of the Uzu Katana masters, having learned from Kushina."

My brain was starting to go into overload trying to process all of the information. One thing did stand out in my mind, the ability to conduct chakra. "Since the blades have the ability to conduct chakra, I wonder if I can use it as an extension of my Juuken." I paused in my musings as another thought struck me. "Who was the previous wielder of my katana?"

Tsunade smiled at me, "Your mother-in-law, Kushina Uzumaki. I know she would be proud that her son's wife now wields her katana."

"It was Naruto's mothers?" I gasped, "It should go to him! I shouldn't have it."

"Hinata, I think I know the reasons why Kushina's katana chose you. One, they follow the elements. Naruto is a wind element, like his father. You are a water element, like Kushina and your mother, Hitomi. Because he isn't a water type, Naruto can't wield Kushina's katana. Two, now Kushina can help you protect and fight alongside her son, through her blade. Don't question why, just accept it. I believe in time Naruto will prove himself worthy, and my guess is that his uncle's katana will choose him, since Kushina's brother had been a wind type."

I nodded, feeling a connection to my long-dead mother-in-law. I would tell Naruto, no doubt, and hope that he was okay with me wielding his mother's blade.

"You are dismissed, Hinata. Enjoy your time off and good luck with your Jonin Trials in ten months. Work hard."

I exited the office and saw Naruto waiting for me. He looked at the katana in my hands, "Hinata-hime, why did Tsunade-baachan give you that?"

I looked at my husband, "Let's get some ramen and eat it at home. I'll explain it to you, but it will take some time."

He nodded, "Okay. We can talk with Iruka-sensei after he gets done teaching for the day."

Once home, I repeated everything Tsunade-sama had told me, and Naruto was actually excited that I was using his mom's katana. "I don't know of anyone who deserves it more, Hinata. You've lost most of your inheritance from your family, so now you can have a piece of mine. I'll prove myself a worthy wielder, and maybe I'll get my uncle's katana, just like Baachan thinks." I smiled at his enthusiasm. Yes, it was fine, and I knew in my heart, this katana now belonged to me.

* * *

AN: Sorry so short, I just wanted to get the Katanas backstory out of the way before I move on to more interesting things. Anyone have someone they want to recommend for an Uzu Katana, please click the little review button at the bottom and tell me who and why, and the reason can't be because I like them. I know this isn't one of my best chapters, but it contains some crucial information. Thank you for reading and remember, Reviews are appreciated, flames are not! Zaijian!


	12. Chapter 12

Author's Note: I only received eleven reviews, but I am still updating. I loved reading your comments, and loved reading your suggestions for the next wielders of the Whirlpool Katanas. (Spoiler) Yes, Naruto will receive one, he will just have to make a very difficult choice to be proven worthy of one, though he already is. Please Read and review, and this time, no freebies. I mUst have fifteen reviews before I update again. Constructive critism appreciated, flames are not, and I still want to hear your opinions and reasons about who should recieve a katana.

Disclaimer: (Alerya hiding behind a tree)

Alerya: I think I finally lost the crazy Pink banshee.

Neji: Are you referring to Sakura?

Alerya: (jumping a foot in the air) Yikes! Why did you sneak up on me?

Neji: Hokage-sama asked me to find you. She has the results of your test.

Alerya: I know I should have told her my parents names. Neji, can you help me with the disclaimer?

Neji: Alerya doesn't own Naruto, even if she looks like him. (smirks)

Alerya: You saw the results, didn't you? (Neji shrugs) Okay, I'll go find Baachan.

Neji: Go to the Hokage Tower. Sakura is waiting to ambush you outside of the hospital. She was saying something about "The female Naruto with Hinata's personality won't let me be with Sasuke-kun."

Alerya: Thanks for the warning! Until next time, people. (Runs off)

Neji: (Under his breath) Yes, she definitely acts like Naruto and Hinata's child. How did she get here?

* * *

"Team Kakashi," Tsunade-sama barked out, "I am assigning you an S-ranked mission." Not a single one of us moved a muscle. "There is a battalion of shinobi from Iwagakure that are running patrols into the Land of Fire, for no discernible reason. Two weeks ago, they attacked a team of Konoha shinobi returning from a mission that took them near our border with the Land of Earth without provocation. Fortunately, all members of the team survived, but one was hurt bad enough that he needed his leg amputated."

I gulped, this was not good. Iwagakure and the Tsuchikage were still bitter about losing the Third Shinobi war to Konoha, and now it appeared they were trying to stir things up again and remove their shame. Naruto, noticing my nervousness, took my hand in his and gave it a gentle squeeze to reassure me. Sai was looking a little apprehensive (amazingly, he was starting to show emotion), Sakura was looking determined, and Kakashi-sensei's face was unreadable. He had also fought in the war as a young Chunin and Jonin, and lost friends to the Iwas. Even with my skills at reading body language, I couldn't tell what he was feeling.

"What are your orders for us, Hokage-sama?" Kakashi asked.

"I want you and your team to use any possible way to get them out of the Land of Fire and running back to Iwa. If you have to destroy the entire battalion, do it. This could start another Shinobi war, and I don't want to have to live through another one. Use whatever force you deem necessary to complete the mission."

"Will we have any back up?"

"Only if you call for it. Kakashi, your team is a powerhouse team, designed for fighting. With the addition of Hinata and your summons, you now have the ability to track people down, in addition to taking them out. I have total confidence in your team's abilities. I will have Yamato and an additional team standing by incase you need help. Kakashi, your original team under Minato Namikaze specialized in infiltration and sabotage. Time for you to use those skills again." She paused, waiting to see if any of us had any questions or objections. "I want you to leave this evening. The sooner you arrive, the fewer troops you will have to face. Don't let Iwa reinforce their people." We all nodded again and took off to prepare to leave.

Once Naruto and I were back at our apartment, I immediately pulled out the sealing scrolls so we could get to work. "Hinata-hime, are you going to take your katana?"

I glanced at the elegant weapon in its bluish-purple sheath. "I think I will. It seems right that an Uzu katana should face the people who destroyed their former village and home."

Naruto began sealing camping supplies into one of the scrolls. I got to work with our weapons and food supplies. "Are you nervous about this mission, Naruto?"

His intense blue eyes locked with mine. "To be honest, Hinata, I'm terrified. I know that once the Iwas see my face, they will focus on me. I look too much like my father for them to ignore it. That's why I've never been sent on a mission that gets me close to Iwa. I'm also worried about you. I know you are a strong kunoichi, but I still want to protect you, which I won't be able to do if the Iwas focus on me."

"I won't leave your side, that's a promise, Naruto," I replied, resting my cheek against his back. "You will need someone to watch your back." I planted a soft kiss on the back of his neck. "I'm glad I can come, otherwise I would be worried sick the whole time you would be gone."

"Thank you, Hinata. With the two of us, those Iwas don't stand a chance." I smiled at his confidence, knowing it was a mask to help me not worry. We finished packing and headed to Ichiraku's for a pre-mission meal. Teuchi and Ayame both wished us luck, even though they had no idea what our mission was.

"Shall we get going?" Kakashi asked (He was on time for once, we had to check and make sure the world hadn't ended) as we gathered by the gate. "Just remember, if we succeed at this mission, we may prevent a Fourth Shinobi war. Let's move out."

We traveled for two uneventful days, heading toward the northern border of the Land of Fire. Once we were close enough, Kakashi instructed, "First thing, we need to make a base camp. Hinata, use your Byakugan eyes to help us find a suitable place, hidden, defensible, and with a water source nearby."

"Byakugan!" I stretched my eyes to their limit, and quickly found a place that wasn't too far away. "Half a kilometer to the north-east, there is a clearing in a dense patch of forest with a creek nearby. It is secluded and easily defensible."

"Good work, lead us there, Hinata," Kakashi said, and I began leading the team in the direction I had seen the clearing. We quickly arrived and began setting up camp. Sakura had a tent to herself, Kakashi and Sai had to share, while Naruto and I had a tent to ourselves.

After a quick, cold meal, we began to make plans. "There are only five of us, against anywhere from fifty to seventy-five Iwa ninja. We must strike from the shadows, because we cannot face them in a frontal battle. Any ideas?"

"We could create some traps," Sai suggested.

"What about using genjutsus to mislead some small patrols?" Sakura thought out loud.

"Ambushes," I said, "Taking out three to five shinobi will be a lot easier than facing all of them at once. We can also choose the battlefield that way."

"We also need to cut off their supply routes," Naruto added his two ryo to the conversation. "There isn't much they can do without supplies and reinforcements. It will also help demoralize them."

Kakashi nodded, "Good ideas. Let's get some rest; I'll take the first watch. We start hunting tomorrow."

Naruto and I retired to our tent and crawled into our shared sleeping bag. "I've never done anything like this before. I have killed, but this feels different," I whispered to Naruto. "I have never been the person to start a fight, but that is what we are doing."

"We aren't the ones starting the fight," he whispered back, "They are in our country for no reason at all. They started it by attacking that team, and we do need to defend themselves." His hands were gently stroking my hair as we spoke.

"And our team is the first line of defense," I replied, snuggling into his embrace. "I'll be fine. You're right; they made the first move by entering the Land of Fire and attacking that team. We need to stop them before this gets out of control."

"I'll also use the Hiraishin," Naruto whispered, "That jutsu scares them the most, and the only one that comes close to terrifying them that much is the Rasengan."

"Be careful with those tri-kunai, Naruto, you are still having trouble aiming," I replied. "That is a good idea. They gave a 'retreat on site' order for your father because of his abilities. If any of them recognize the Hiraishin, they'll think they are being attacked by the ghost of Minato Namikaze."

"Good, that will scare them even more. Maybe that will get them to retreat back to Iwagakure, if they think I'm his ghost, and not his son." He paused for a moment, "Hinata-hime?"

"Yes, Naruto-kun?"

"Can we name our first son after my father?"

"Sure," I replied, "Hanabi asked me not to name a child after my mother because she wants to. I'd like to use the name Sayuri, after your grandmother. If it wasn't for her, your mother wouldn't have made it to Konoha and you wouldn't exist."

"Sayuri, Lily. I like that. Well, now we have another reason to fight," Naruto murmured, "We need to protect the village so it will remain a safe place to raise our children, once they start arriving."

"Not until after our Jonin trials," I added, starting to drop off. "I love you, Naruto. Sweet dreams."

"Sweet dreams to you, my Hinata-hime. I love you, too."

The next morning, the five members of Team Kakashi set out. I was using my Byakugan and Kakashi had summoned Pakkun and his friends to help us search for any squads of Iwa shinobi small enough for us to take down. About two hours away from our base, we found a group of ten Iwa ninja and began to prepare.

"Naruto, let's have some scare tactics, please," Kakashi said. Naruto nodded and handed each of us a tri-kunai. He also embedded one at his feet incase he need to make a quick escape.

"Throw them into the group, but don't hit them with the kunai. Make sure they get near the oldest of the group. They will be the ones most likely to know what these mean," Naruto instructed us.

"Once Naruto arrives, we'll all jump in," Kakashi said. "Now, don't get cocky and make sure to leave some alive so they can spread the word to the rest of the Iwas."

We nodded in agreement, and let the tri-kunai fly into the group. Naruto disappeared in a flash of yellow and reappeared in the middle of the enemy ninja. There were immediate reactions from the Iwas.

"It's the Yellow Flash!"

"I heard he was dead!"

"I think you heard wrong."

Byakugan activated, I leapt into the fight, Kushina's katana drawn and ready in my hand. I made it to Naruto's side and we stood back to back, fighting together. My katana seemed to move of it's own accord. At times, I felt as though there were another pair of hands on the hilt, helping me use it. It was a strange experience, but one I didn't have time to think about.

We were fighting five ninjas, Kakashi and Sai were handling two each, and Sakura was pounding on one, proving that she is Tsunade's apprentice.

"Rasengan!" Naruto yelled as he plowed the ball of chakra into an Iwa's stomach.

Almost unconsciously, I began channeling my chakra into my katana and said, "Hidden Whirlpool Secret Ninja Art: Elemental Katana!" A wave of water emerged from my blade, soaking two ninja, and throwing them into a tree with so much force I could hear their bones snap. I was struck dumb for a moment, but another shinobi attacked me, forcing me back on defense.

"So, you're a Hyuga," he gave me a greedy, lecherous smile, "of the Main branch. You could come with us willingly and be treated nicely, or if we have to take you by force, we will take your eyes and make use of your attractive body." He licked his lips as his gaze traveled over my figure.

"I don't think so," I replied, attacking him. "I have a husband who doesn't take kindly to people threatening me, and I don't like it either."

"You are outnumbered, Hyuga girl. We will defeat you, and I will take pleasure in your body after your eyes have been removed.

I raised my katana to use the Elemental Katana attack again, but an orange and black clad figure stood in my way. Naruto held a kunai to the ninja's throat, radiating a heart-stopping killer intent. "What did you just say to my wife?"

I quickly scanned the battlefield with my Byakugan and was shocked to find there were no other Iwa shinobi still standing. They were all dead, unconscious, or too wounded to stand anymore. "Kitsune," I said, using Naruto's code name, "Remember Sensei's orders, we must leave some alive. Let's let him go, but not without harm. Gentle Strike!" I channeled my charka through my blade and gently tapped his upper arm with the flat. With an audible crack, his humerus fractured.

"Okay, Hime, but if I see this guy again, he will be dead," Naruto replied, removing the kunai from the ninja's throat and knocking him unconscious. "How many are still alive?"

"Four, but all are injured, two severely. Where are Sensei, Ekaki, and Ikan?"

"I don't know. Our job here is done, let's go find them," he replied, taking my hand as we high-tailed it away from the site. Only fifty feet away, we found Sakura kneeling over an unconscious Sai, her hands covered in healing chakra, desperately trying to close the gaping wound in his abdomen. Kakashi was lying down nearby, bleeding from a wound to his shoulder, his Sharingan eye still uncovered.

"Hinata, come here," Kakashi said. I did as he asked as he pulled a scroll out of a pocket of his Jonin vest. "It is my summoning contract with the ninja dogs. I don't know how long I'll be out of action because I've over used my Sharingan again. I want you to sign the summoning contract with the dogs. That way they still can help you."

"Okay," I replied, cutting my thumb and signing the contact with my blood. Once I was done, I began to treat his wound with the limited medical jutsu I knew. I got the bleeding stopped and the wound bandaged, only to find that Kakashi had fallen unconscious.

"We need to get them back to camp," Naruto said as he created a few shadow clones to help us carry Sai and Kakashi. We took our time, Naruto leading the way, Sakura in between the litters holding Kakashi and Sai the shadow clones were carrying, and I was the rearguard, using my Byakugan to make sure we weren't being followed. When we finally made it back to camp, Sakura checked her two patients.

"They are both stable, and none of their wounds have reopened yet," she reported. "Sai has lost a lot of blood, but I gave him a plasma pill which will help him get it back. Kakashi's wound isn't as bad as Sai's, but he has fallen into a coma due to overuse of the Sharingan. Once his chakra had recovered, he'll wake up. I'd feel better if we were at a hospital, but I am confident if we don't move them, they will recover just fine."

"Good," Naruto said, "But what should we do about the mission? We've just lost two people for who knows how long. Should we send a message to Tsunade-baachan to send the back up team and not do anything until they come, or keep setting up ambushes so we can still do our job in the meantime?"

"Who'll guard the camp if we're away and let us know if either Kakashi or Sai take a turn for the worse?" Sakura replied.

"Our summons could," I replied. "Naruto has signed the contract with the toads, Sakura, you have signed with the slugs, and right before he passed out, Kakashi had me sign with the dogs. What other option have we? It's only the three of us, so we have to make use of all of our resources."

Sakura nodded, "Okay, Hinata, try to summon Pakkun so we can send him with a message to Tsunade-shisho. We do need backup, no matter what."

Naruto talked me through the seals, and I easily performed the jutsu. When the smoke cleared, Pakkun was shocked to find out that I had summoned him.

"What do you mean Kakashi is on a coma?" he asked, "Which is why he had Hinata sign our contract?" We all nodded. "Okay, I don't mind, I like Hinata. What do you want me to do?"

"We need you to carry a message back to Konoha so the Hokage knows that Kakashi and Sai are injured and we need back up," Sakura said.

"Please, Pakkun, can you take this to her?" I asked, handing him the message.

"Sure, Hinata, I'll get it there as fast as I can." He took the message and ran off to the south, toward Konoha.

"What should we do in the mean time?" Sakura asked.

"We could continue our plans, just attack smaller groups and leave plenty of traps for the Iwas," Naruto replied, "I've got some good ones that any ninja will fall for."

"How?"

"Being a prankster does come in handy on occasion," Naruto replied with a sheepish grin. "We can do little bits every day to demoralize them and whittle down their forces. I can always leave a shadow clone or two when we leave, and if one of them gets dispelled, I'll have their memories, so we'll immediately know if there is trouble here."

"Hinata, what do you think?"

"I think both of you have a point," I chose my words carefully, "but I think we should continue to ambush and attack. Once they hear of this ambush, more troops should arrive and we'll be more outnumbered than we are now, even with Yamato-san's reinforcements. We have to continue to reduce their forces so we can fight on more equal ground. We also have to find the Iwas base camp in the meantime. We might have to strike against it to get them to leave."

Sakura nodded, seeing the logic in my words. "Okay, I'll be sharing a tent with our two injured teammates just incase something happens. Who will stand guard tonight, since we are all exhausted?"

Naruto created a couple of Shadow clones, "You guys know what to do, if there is any trouble, dispel so I will wake up and we can take care of the problem." The clones nodded without arguing and left. I quickly fixed a small meal for us while Sakura got Sai and Kakashi situated and IV's running. After dinner had been cleaned up, we all retired for so much needed sleep.

"Naruto," I whispered, "Do you think we will be able to succeed in this mission? We've already lost two of our people taking out ten ninja. Can we do it?"

"We have to, Hinata," he replied, "because currently there is no one else to do the job. We must hold out and stop the Iwas, with or without Yamato's reinforcements. It will be fine, we've both survived fighting against Pain, so this should be a piece of cake."

I gently pressed my hand against the scar on my abdomen, remembering how fighting Pain to save Naruto had nearly killed me. He saw what I was doing. "Don't worry, Hinata, it will be okay." He held me tight in his arms, trying to reassure my fears.

"How do you do that?" I whispered, "I can tell you are scared to and plagued by the same doubts as me. How can you ignore them and reassure me?"

"I just don't listen to them," he replied, "I have to think positively, or I would have died from hopelessness a long time ago, Hinata. Get some sleep; we are going to need it for the next few days."

I quietly nodded, "You, too, Naruto. We both need it." I gave him a kiss and closed my eyes. It still took a long time for me to fall asleep, and I could tell he had the same problem. Sleep finally claimed us, however, and we slept soundly, preparing our bodies for the coming battles. I just prayed we would survive them, the odds weren't in our favor.

* * *

**EVIL CLIFFHANGER JUTSU!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

A/N, take two: Okay, the code names they are using are Kitsune= Fox (Naruto), Hime= Princess (Hinata), Sensei = Teacher (Kakashi, it would be too obvious to call him Copy Cat), Ekaki = Artist (Sai) and Ikan= Medic (Sakura). Remember, no finding out what happens next until you hit that little green button at the bottom and leave me a review, even if it is just to say I liked it, or please update. I do like reviews. Jia You (Taiwanese saying, means Keep it up)


	13. Chapter 13

Author's note: I know I said I would only update if I got fifteen reviews, but I enjoy writing and posting this story way too much to be patient. Here is the next chapter, I had a lot of fun, and out in some stuff that even surprised me as I wrote it. Please read and review! No flames allowed! I'll need at least ten reviews before I'll post again! That is a promise, Believe it! Whoa, Naruto moment there. In my defense, I am on pain killers for a back injury right now. If anything gets too weird, that is what you blame!

Disclaimer: (Alerya making her way to the Hokage tower)

Shikamaru: Are you here to see the Hokage?

Alerya: Yes, and I'm trying to avoid Sakura while I'm at it. Please tell me she is here.

Temari: Sorry, she's at the hospital. Some medical emergency came up and she was needed.

Alerya: Dang it, darn it, and something worse! I need to stay away from sakura! I got her really mad at me.

Shikamaru: That's troublesome. Sakura mad is not a good thing.

Alerya: Tell me about it. Hey, can you help me with the disclaimer?

Shikamaru: Nah, it'd be too much of a drag.

(Temari hits him with her fan)

Temari: I will. Alerya doesn't own Naruto! If you need any help, just yell and we'll come!

Alerya: Thanks, Temari! Ja ne! (Sneaks off towards the hospital)

Shikamaru: Troublesome.

* * *

I made my way back to camp, making sure I wasn't being followed while trying to clean off my katana and favor my wounded arm at the same time. It was rather difficult, but I was doing it. It had been ten grueling days since we had sent the message to Tsunade to send reinforcements, but none had arrived. We had been making strikes everyday, and occasionally in the middle of the night when we could find small campsites of roving squads. We hadn't been keeping track of the numbers, but Sakura estimated we had currently taken care of about half of the Iwas strike force. We had also destroyed their supply routes, so they were starting to run out of some supplies. We still hadn't found the base camp yet, but we weren't giving up.

"Hinata, you're back!" A ninken came out of the bushes.

"Hello, Shiba," I greeted him, giving him a friendly scratch. "How was guarding the camp?"

"Boring, Kakashi is still out of it, but Sakura says Sai is improving. He should be safe to move within the next week and a half." He shook his head at my unspoken question, "No, they haven't come yet. They might have run into some trouble on the way here."

"Okay, thank you," I replied, "Is Naruto back yet?"

"He got here less than ten minutes ago," Shiba replied. "You'd better have Sakura look at that arm."

"I will thank you. Do you need someone to take your place?"

"Nah, I'm good for a few more hours. Get some rest, Hinata."

I followed his advice as I entered the camp. Dinner was cooking over a small fire and both Sakura and Naruto were sitting down by it, looking just how I felt, utterly exhausted. I collapsed on the ground next to my husband, whose arm went around me in a reflexive gesture. "Was your day like mine?" I asked, trying not to yawn.

"I took care of a three man squad with one of my genjutsu traps and my poisoned senbons," Sakura said, stirring the food.

"I got a four man squad, and took care of them with my Fuuton: Rasengan (Wind Style Rasengan) and a bunch of Shadow Clones. They all began running scared when I showed up, yelling that the Yellow Flash has returned," Naruto reported.

"Just the Wind Style Rasengan, not the Rasenshuriken?" Sakura demanded.

"I can only do that in sage mode, Sakura, and most of our battles have been too quick for me to gather enough nature chakra to enter sage mode," Naruto replied.

"I also took care of a four man squad, using both my katana and my Juuken. I really need to thank Neji for copying those jutsu scrolls out of the Hyuga library and giving them to me."

Sakura looked at me oddly, "Why would Neji do that?"

"Because I have been forbidden to receive anymore instruction in Juuken as a punishment for eloping with Naruto," I informed her, "Neji and Hanabi are ignoring that rule, and are helping me finish training in Juuken. Hiashi is giving us a blind eye, so we are fine as long as the clan elders don't find out."

"Did you get any ideas where the Iwa's base camp is located?" Naruto asked.

"I've got the general direction, but no ideas where it is specifically," I honestly replied. "I'll see if I can get closer tomorrow."

Sakura then noticed my arm, "Hinata, what happened?"

"Just a cut from a kunai, Sakura, nothing serious," I replied, "It does hurt a little bit."

She shook her head and quickly healed my injury. "Hinata, we can't afford to get injured. There are only three of us, and I am worried that we haven't met up with Yamato's squad yet. They should have arrived four days ago."

"We know, Sakura," Naruto said, sounding a little impatient, "Something must have happened to them. Unfortunately, we can't go look for them until we complete our mission. Once we find the base camp, I could always summon Gamabunta or another toad to help us flatten it. Until we know where it is, we have to keep going. By the way, I think dinner's done." We quickly ate and retired for the night, some of the ninken and a few shadow clones keeping watch. With ambushing patrols every day, we needed to sleep every night, so the clones got a workout.

I lay in Naruto's arms, hearing his quiet breathing as my mind wouldn't calm enough for me to sleep. _There is something wrong. Pakkun told me that he had personally handed the message to Tsunade and saw Yamato's squad head out. Why aren't they here yet? Should I send one of the ninken to see what might have stopped them? Have they run into bandits or some rogue ninja?_

"You need to sleep, Hinata," Naruto murmured into my ear. "Worrying all night long won't help Yamato's group get here any faster."

I jumped at the sound of his voice, "I thought you were asleep!"

"No, I could tell you were still awake. You were shifting slightly, which you only do when you are awake. Once you are asleep, you don't move at all. I'm worried about Yamato's group also. We need the back up, even if we are doing well on our own."

"We can't keep up the pace," I agreed. "I've been considering sending one of the ninken to look for them, but we need their help. I don't know if we can spare one, and they are just as exhausted as we are. Once we finish this mission, I am going to bed for a week, and not even the ANBU will get me to leave."

"Can I join you?"

"I never said that you wouldn't be with me," I replied. _Why am I flirting with him at a time like this? We could easily get killed, and all I want to do right now is make out with him! _I abruptly kissed him, long and hard, finally ending it when we both needed to breathe.

"Hinata-hime?" Naruto sounded puzzled.

I was blushing in the darkness, "I'm sorry, Naruto-kun, I know you're tired, but I wanted to." This was feeling a little awkward.

"It's okay, I feel the same way. I think we just need to reassure ourselves that we are both still alive, despite this mess we are in." He kissed me back. After a few minutes of this, we heard a yell from outside.

"Naruto, Hinata! What are the two of you doing? I'm trying to sleep here, which I can't do with the noises I can hear coming from your tent!"

I almost died of embarrassment while Naruto replied, "Reminding each other we are still alive and that we love each other!"

"Just shut up and go to sleep, you two!"

I just shrugged and gave Naruto a quick kiss, "I guess we'd better do as she says. I don't want to know what she would do if we don't sleep."

Naruto sighed, obviously tempted to keep going, despite the threat of Sakura's wrath. "Well, we'd better get this mission over with quick so we can spend that week together in bed, and I don't think we'll just be sleeping. I love you, Hinata."

I smiled in the darkness, "I love you, Naruto."

"Don't worry, Hinata, we'll survive this. Believe it." I snuggled closer to him, letting his words calm my fears enough for me to sleep.

* * *

"Naruto, Sakura! I found the Iwas' base camp!" I eagerly reported. Naruto jumped up from where he was building the fire, and Sakura ran out of the tent where Sai and Kakashi were.

"You did, where is it?" Naruto demanded. I quickly explained, and reported how many ninja were still there. Only twenty-two remained of the fifty we had been sent out to destroy. Some had been killed, while others had deserted, leaving a greatly reduced force. It had been three weeks since Sai and Kakashi were injured, and Yamato's forces had never arrived. We all were positive something had happened to them on the way, but kept on with our mission.

"Let's take a day off and draw up a plan to take out the base," Sakura said. "We'll need to be well-rested to do this. Oh, good news, Sai is recovering nicely. He isn't in any shape to fight, but he'll be able to make it home."

"And I can help you plan, even if I can't fight," Sai's voice sounded from the tent. He carefully walked out and sat down next to Sakura. "I can't stay in there any longer; Kakashi won't stop talking in his sleep. He keeps mentioning the names of his two teammates, Rin and Obito. I hope he'll wake up soon."

"Why is he still like this?" Naruto asked Sakura, "He's almost fully recovered from the effects of overusing his Sharingan."

"I don't know why, but my guess is that he still feels a lot of guilt about the circumstances of Obito's death, and, for some reason, this mission has brought it to the surface," Sakura said. "Ino would be able to know for sure, she knows more about healing the mind that I do. I think it came to the surface while he was unconscious, and now he is trying to deal with it. That's my best guess."

"Once we get the base taken care of, we can worry about healing Kakashi-sensei," Sai said, "Right now, the Iwas are our priority." We spent the rest of the night planning our attack, hoping we could just get them to surrender and not have to kill all of them. Anyone who did surrender, we would allow to go back to Iwagakure. We couldn't take prisoners.

Two days later, in the early morning hours, I led Naruto and Sakura toward the camp. Sai, Pakkun, and Shiba had remained behind to guard the camp, while the rest of the ninken came with us. Naruto was getting ready to summon Gamakichi and Gamatastu once we got close, and Sakura was preparing to summon Katsuyu. With only three of us, we knew we needed the help of the summons.

"Were any of the Sannin this stupid to attack a base with only three people?" Sakura asked.

"I don't know, but this is kind of desperate," Naruto replied. "C'mon, Sakura, will they honestly expect three Chunin to do this?"

"No," I replied, "It's a gamble I doubt even Tsunade-sama would bet on. We are desperate, that much is obvious. The base is on the other side of this hill."

"Let's do this," Naruto said as he bit his thumb and began forming hand seals, "Summoning Jutsu!"

Sakura did the same, "Summoning Jutsu!"

When the smoke disappeared, there were two rather big toads and one huge slug. Naruto was on the head of the orange and black toad, while Sakura stood on top of the slug's head.

"They make us look small," Bull said, standing next to me.

"We all have our different strengths," I replied, "and now all of them are needed. Let's try to keep up."

We followed them as quickly as we could, and by the time we reached the camp, pandemonium had broken out. Some ninja were trying to fight the huge summon creatures, while others had flat out surrendered. I unsheathed Kushina's katana and got to work.

My blade cleared a path for me, any time someone tried to stop me, my blade stopped them. Finally I found what appeared to the leader's tent and headed toward it. Just as I arrived and had taken out a guard, a woman in her early thirties stepped out, carrying a bloody kunai. Without thinking I swept my blade toward her, only to have her block it with the kunai. "Wait, I'm from Konoha!" she said, making me pause.

I stared in shock at the woman, and the kunai she was using. She had long brown hair, brown eyes hardened by years of ninja life, and two purple square clan markings on her cheeks. She wasn't wearing a hitai-ite, which surprised me, but my attention was focused on the kunai she held. It wasn't a standard kunai; it was a _tri-kunai_, just like the ones the Yondaime and Naruto used with the Hiraishin.

She stared at me in shock and spoke up, "The leader is dead. These people are acting against orders from the Tsuchikage, so don't blame Iwa for this. The leader was going rouge."

I nodded, "If you surrender, we will let you return to your home." Despite my ability to read body language, I couldn't read hers. She was obviously exhausted, which made it hard to tell.

"I told you, Hyuga-san, I'm from Konoha!"

"Prove it," I replied with a flat tone.

She stood tall, "I am a Konoha Jonin and a medical ninja who fought in the Third Shinobi War. My sensei was Minato Namikaze, the Yondaime Hokage, and my teammates were Kakashi Hatake and Obito Uchiha."

My mouth fell open in shock. "You are Rin Norita?"

She nodded, "Yes, I am Rin Norita. Do you need anymore proof, Hyuga-san?" She held up the tri-kunai. "I have this and for additional proof, I need you to answer a question for me." I nodded, my mind still having trouble trying to believe this woman might be telling the truth. "What happened to Naruto, my sensei's son? I was the medic who attended Kushina when she gave birth. Kushina died from blood loss, and Minato-sensei died sealing the Kyuubi into baby Naruto. How is he?"

That proved it. Only five people knew Naruto's parentage, and Rin Norita was the medic who had signed his birth certificate. I replied, choosing my words carefully, barely noticing the fighting had stopped, "You know Naruto is the heir of the Namikaze clan. Only five people in Konoha know that. I believe you are Rin. Come with me, my Jonin sensei will be able to confirm your identity." _Once he wakes up._ "Please, don't mention Naruto is the Yondaime's son. The other members of our team don't know."

"Who are you?" she asked, grabbing a rather tattered backpack out of the tent.

I smiled, "Hinata, former heiress of the Hyuga clan, Konoha Chunin, and wife of Naruto Uzumaki."

"You're Naruto's wife?"

"Yes, we've been married for almost four months now." I blushed slightly as I told her this. "Come, Naruto and Sakura are waiting for me." I gathered the ninken and began heading back to camp, Rin following behind me.

* * *

A/N, Take two: Rin is alive, will she be able to pull Kakashi out of his coma, or whatever it is that is wrong with him? Keep watching for the next update! (Why am I talking like this?) I know that some things don't entirely mesh with Naruto canon, but that is the reason why this is a fan fic. Please tell me what you think, just no flames. I know that three teenagers taking out over twenty ninja at one may seem a little hard to believe, but the Yondaime could take out an entire army by himself. You never know.


	14. Chapter 14

Author's note: Wow! That was fast! Here is the next chapter. For those of you who wanted to see some RinxKakashi fluff, you got it! I like this chapter, even if it a lot of dialogue. Please read and review! No flames allowed! Oh, the song in here I quote I don't own, it is from one of my favorite songs, Summer Sunshine by the Corrs. If you can find the hidden movie quote in this chapter, you will be rewarded with another chapter!

Disclaimer: (Alerya has just snuck into the hospital)

Ino: You must be Alerya!

(Alerya jumps a foot)

Alerya: Do people here just enjoy seeing me do this? Do you know where I can find Tsunade-sama?

Ino: Just upstairs. (Whispers) Who are you pairing me with in your fic?

Alerya: Don't know. You went on a date with Chouji, but I don't know if that lasted. I'm not sure who you are with.

Ino: I don't have a problem with that. Do you want me to give the disclaimer?

Alerya: Sure, thanks!

Ino: Alerya doesn't own Naruto! (Smirks)

Alerya: Why should I be scared to see those test results? Later!

* * *

After a short distance, I saw a familiar figure waiting next to a stand of trees. "Naruto, where is Sakura?" I called out once I got close enough. I began to run full out to him, Rin and the ninken struggling to keep up.

Once I arrived, Naruto held me tight in his arms. "Sakura left to get back to camp as soon as possible. She's worried about Kakashi-sensei and Sai. She thinks that if Sai isn't careful, he may reopen his wound." He paused and asked, "Hinata-hime, who is this?"

Rin stepped forward, staring at him, her mouth falling open in shock. She seemed to be struck speechless for the moment, so I spoke up, "She is a Konoha medical ninja who was being held a prisoner by the Iwas for several years. Am I right?"

She nodded, "Yes, I've been a prisoner for around fourteen years. The Iwas held me for my medical skills and because of who my Jonin sensei was. They really didn't like him."

"Hinata, how are you sure she is a Konoha ninja? Er, why are you staring at me?" Naruto asked, now looking uncomfortable with Rin's intense gaze.

"I'm sorry, Naruto, but it is amazing how much you look like your father. Hinata believed me when I told her you are my sensei's son. I was the medic who delivered you and failed to save your mother's life that night. I used to visit you in the orphanage, but the last time I saw you, you were three. Of course you wouldn't remember me. My name is Rin Norita, medical ninja and Jonin of Konohagakure." She stopped talking, realizing that she had been rambling.

"Kakashi-sensei's old teammate? He said that you were dead!" Naruto exclaimed.

"No, I was captured and kept alive, because they knew I was the one who successfully transplanted Obito's Sharingan eye to replace Kakashi's destroyed left eye. They wanted to capture Hinata and force me to do the procedure again." She paused, and then looked at us, "Kakashi is your sensei?!"

I grinned, "Yes, and I believe he'll be very happy to see you. I admit, I don't think we have ever seen him on a date."

Naruto was confused, but Rin blushed slightly at my comment. _So, she does have feelings for Kakashi-sensei. This will be interesting._ She shook her head as she stated, "That baka! He is so stubborn and dedicated. I need to have a talk with him."

We made our way back to our camp, and we asked Rin if the Iwas had encountered any other Konoha shinobi. "No, just the three of you. For the last two weeks I've been hearing about the pink-haired genjutsu user, the katana wielding Hyuga kunoichi, and the ninja who looked way too much like the Yellow Flash. They began calling you the next Sannin."

"WHAT!" Naruto and I exclaimed together. The next Sannin, the three of us?

She laughed, "The title was given to the Sannin by an enemy of Konoha who was impressed by their fighting skills. Apparently the tradition has been followed."

Naruto exclaimed, "The Iwas call three Chunin the next Sanin? I can't wait to tell this to Tsunade-baachan." I nodded weakly, still trying to process what Rin had told us.

"Tsunade Senju, yes, I heard a rumor she became the Godaime after Orochimaru killed the Sandaime," Rin mused out loud. "What compelled her to return to Konoha?"

Naruto smirked, "She lost a bet with me that I couldn't master the Rasengan within a week. I did, so she had to come back."

We all laughed at that. "I believe that Minato-sensei and Kushina-neechan are very proud of you, Naruto," Rin said, looking like she was fighting back tears. "I wish I had been there for you these past years."

"It's not your fault you were captured," Naruto replied. Rin nodded, but didn't look convinced.

Sakura met us by the outskirts of the camp. "Who is that? We aren't taking prisoners, Naruto and Hinata."

"We are returning her to her home. She is a Konoha ninja who was captured fourteen years ago. They kept her alive because she had successfully transplanted a Sharingan eye to replace a teammate's destroyed eye. She's a medical ninja, so you have some help with Kakashi-sensei and Sai," I said.

"Sakura, meet Rin Norita, Konoha Jonin and student of the Yondaime Hokage. Rin, this is our teammate, Sakura Haruno, Konoha Chunin, medical ninja, apprentice to the Slug Sannin Tsunade Senju, and student of Kakashi Hatake," Naruto introduced them to each other.

"Kakashi-sensei's old teammate?" she gasped, then sagged with relief. "Maybe you can help him. He was injured and overused his Sharingan again, and he's been practically comatose for the past three weeks." She paused, "He's been talking in his sleep about the mission where he lost his eye. Sai is doing fine, I moved him out of Kakashi's tent so he won't smother him to get him to shut up."

Rin offered, "I'll help with Kakashi. I know that he is still dealing with guilt from that mission. He is such a stubborn fool, he won't let go of it, even though both Obito and I forgave him for his choices. He needs to learn how to forgive himself."

"I'll take you to him," I said, adjusting how the sheath of my katana hung on my back. Naruto stayed at my side while Rin followed us to the tent where Kakashi lay inside. I opened the flap to let her in. "Rin, I'll bring you some food and water. Once Sensei is able to travel, we'll return to Konoha. Our mission is complete."

She nodded, moving to sit by Kakashi's side. "If you need anything, let us know," Naruto offered, handing her the tattered bag and a blanket. "If you find any of his books, feel free to give them to us. They make great fire starters."

"Jiraiya's books?" she asked, sounding slightly disgusted, "Don't worry, I will."

"Please help him, Rin, we can't," I pleaded. Naruto took my hand and squeezed it in a comforting gesture.

"I'll do my best," the older woman promised as we left her in the tent. We could hear Pakkun talking to her from the inside, but couldn't make out the words.

"Don't worry, Hinata-hime," Naruto whispered into my ear, "It will be fine. Who would have believed that one of Kakashi's teammates was still alive, and we found her?"

"I don't know, but it is a good thing we did find her," I replied, and yawned. "Can we take a nap?"

Naruto opened his mouth to answer, but his stomach growled instead. "Oh, sorry, I forgot," I laughed, "Food first, and then we can sleep."

We quickly ate, and stayed by the fire, now burning brightly thanks to some perverted books Rin had found in Kakashi-sensei's pack. Sai ate with us, while Rin stayed with Kakashi.

The next three days were really quiet. Rin watched over Kakashi, talking to him the whole time, trying to get him to wake up. I sent the ninken out to try to find out what had happened to Yamato's squad, and we prepared to leave. In the evenings, we would join Rin in the sick tent and listen as she told us stories of her missions as a Genin and Chunin during the Third Shinobi War. We laughed at hearing of the bell test they had been given, and all of us shed tears as she told of that last mission together, to destroy the Nannabi Bridge. We in turn told her of what had been going on in Konoha during the time she had been held prisoner.

At about noon of the third day, we all heard Rin singing something. As one, we all crept closer and heard the last words of the song.

"In the heat of summer sunshine,

I miss you, like nobody else,

In the heat of summer sunshine,

I kiss you, and nobody needs to know."

We all waited outside of the tent, not even feeling embarrassed for eavesdropping. Rin's voice sounded from the other side of the tent. "It is a song from Uzugakure. Remember how Kushina-neechan would sing them to distract us when we were all trying to focus on something? I remember how both you and Obito hated how she would call you two her little brothers, but I enjoyed it when she was in charge of training us when Minato-sensei had to leave on a mission. I remember that song the best because we heard her singing it before we left on the mission where Obito died. When we returned, that's when we found out that Sensei had proposed to her before we left. They eloped six weeks later, and the only witnesses were Jiraiya-sama, Tsunade-sama, the two of us, and the Sandaime Hokage. I still find it funny that Naruto and Hinata eloped just like they did. I know now what she meant by singing that when we left. Even when they were apart, he was always in her heart, and she was in his. It made the distance not seem so great. I felt the same way when I was captured. I thought of you every single day, wondering if you were okay, and if you were able to forgive me for not coming back, like I had promised." She paused for a moment. "There I go, rambling again. I never used to do this, but I had almost given up hope of seeing you again. There is one thing I want to do, so please, don't be mad at me."

The suspense was killing the four of us. Sai eased open the tent flap just enough for us to see Rin pull down Kakashi's mask and place her lips on his in a gentle kiss. She tried to pull back, but we could see Kakashi's hand on her neck, keeping her there. Once they parted, Kakashi whispered, "Rin, am I dreaming? You were killed fourteen years ago."

"No, I wasn't. I was captured by that group of bandits that killed the rest of the team. They gave me to the Iwas when they discovered that I was one of Minato Namikaze's students. The Iwas kept me alive, hoping that they could force me to transplant a kekkei genkai if they managed to capture one. Besides, would a dream feel like this?" She leaned in and kissed him again.

The four of us didn't say a word, but Naruto pulled out a camera. Sakura glared at him, but he pointed to Kakashi, whose face was now uncovered. She smiled and nodded.

Once the kiss was done, Rin helped him sit up. "Your students have been worried sick about you. You won't believe what they have done while you were out. Naruto, Hinata, and Sakura took care of the entire battalion in just three weeks. I was forced to treat the wounded, and it reminded me of Minato-sensei's handiwork."

"I have been out of it," Kakashi muttered, "What about Sai?"

"He had a bad injury to the abdomen, but he's almost fully recovered. We just needed you to wake up before we could go home."

"I kept having dreams of you talking to me," he murmured, gripping her hand tightly.

"I've been talking non-stop for three days," she replied. She was looking at him carefully, seeming a little apprehensive.

"Did you mean what you said? Obito was like a brother to you, and he told me to take care of you for my sake, not his? He was okay with the two of us?"

She nodded, looking pleased, "Yes, he was. I also think Sensei is rolling his eyes and saying it's about time. And yes, I know Naruto is Minato-sensei's son. I am the medic who delivered him."

"I didn't find out until right after Naruto and Hinata eloped. Tsunade informed Hiashi, so he wouldn't seal Hinata for marrying Naruto." Sai and Sakura were now staring at Naruto, shock written on their faces. He just blushed and mouthed, _I'll explain later._

Rin spoke again, "Kushina would be happy, and not just for them."

"You mean us as well?" Kakashi laughed, "Better late than never." They kissed again, and Naruto managed to snap a couple of pictures. The flash of the camera startled them out of their kiss.

"About time, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto called out, causing the two of them to blush when they realized we had caught them.

I laughed, "Rin, you just solved one of the biggest mysteries in Konoha. What does Kakashi-sensei really look like?"

"And now we have proof," Sai added, pointing toward the camera.

"It looks like you have fully recovered, Kakashi-sensei," Sakura smirked, "can we go home now? Rin is coming with us, so she can watch out for you." We all laughed as our sensei pulled his mask on, clearly embarrassed. Sakura then glared at my husband with cold, green eyes, "What did they mean by you are their sensei's son, Naruto?"

"Sakura, I wanted to prove myself to everyone before I told people my real name! I didn't want everyone treating me different because I'm the son of the Yondaime! Please, don't say anything until I do!" Naruto hastily explained.

Sai nodded, "That makes sense, otherwise the villagers would have started treating you like they treated Sasuke. How long has Hinata known?"

"I was there when Tsunade told Naruto, almost a year ago," I replied. "He's still Naruto; his last name is just different. I don't care."

"Everyone, let's head back tomorrow," Kakashi broke into our discussion. "Why didn't you send for reinforcements?"

We all looked at him. "We did," Naruto finally spoke up, "But they never came. We think something happened to them on their way here. We were going to investigate on our way back to Konoha."

Kakashi said what all of us were thinking, "I have a bad feeling about this."

* * *

A/N. take two: Any guesses on what happened to Yamato's relief squad? If any one is interested in a one shot from Rin's POV, just put it in a review or if I can figure out how to put a poll on my profile, vote there! Thanks again for reading!


	15. Chapter 15

Author's note: Brace yourselves, here is the next one. I apologize in advance if everything doesn't match up with Naruto canon, but I do my best! Please read and review! Let's see what happened to Yamato's relief team and how will people react to Rin being alive. No flames allowed, please. I know I have many shortcoming as a writer, so constructive criticism is appreciated.

Discalimer: (Alerya is now lost in the hospital)

Alerya: Where is she? Blast, where am I?

Kakashi: Yo. (nose in book)

Alerya: Hi, Kakashi-sensei. Do you know where Tsunade is?

Kakashi: I'm not sure, I think she is in the lab on the first floor.

Alerya: I just came from there! Can you give the disclaimer for me, please?

Kakashi: (Looking confused) Alerya doesn't own Naruto.

Alerya: (Heading off) Arigato, sensei! Be careful walking while reading, you don't want to hit any walls by mistake, trust me. I speak from experience.

Kakashi: I never have hit anything, and I do this all the- (walks into a wall)

Alerya: (shrugging) I did warn him. Repeat, voice of experience here.

* * *

"Can you see anything, Hinata?" Kakashi asked. We were at the halfway point of our journey. Having heard nothing from any of the civilians we came across, we had to conclude that Yamato's squad hadn't made it any further than here. An hour ago, we had finally got a civilian recalling that a group of Konoha ninja had recently camped nearby some days ago.

I strained my Byakugan to its limits. "I think I see something, about six kilometers east of our position. I'm not sure what it is, but it might be them."

"It's a lead, a small one, but a lead none the less. Lead the way, Hinata," Kakashi said. We all took off, taking it a little slower than normal, thanks to our two injured friends. As we got closer, I was able to make out more details with my Byakugan. When we were within one kilometer of the campsite I had spotted, I stopped dead.

"What is it, Hinata?" Naruto whispered.

"It's a trap," I replied, "Suigetsu Houzuki is holding Yamato-san and the others prisoner. They all appear to be either unconscious or incapacitated in someway."

"This is bad. The Akatsuki and Madara may be finished, but Sasuke's blasted Team Taka is still going strong!" Naruto growled. "What should we do? We can't leave Yamato and the others behind."

"Suigetsu has the ability to turn his body to water," Sai said, "Maybe Hinata's water katana jutsu will have an effect on him."

Kakashi looked at me in shock, "You've used the Elemental Katana attack?" I nodded, puzzled. "Kushina told me that if it was needed, the katana could give you clues on how to unlock its powers. Maybe if Hinata and I work together, we can take care of Suigetsu."

"What do you mean, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked.

"Hinata isn't the only wielder of an Uzu Katana, Sakura. I brought mine, and my elemental affinity is lightning."

"Which will take Suigetsu down," Naruto said. "Can you combine Water and Lightning chakra to make a more powerful jutsu?"

"I think so. Want to try it, Hinata? The katanas should help the attacks work together. At least that's what Kushina-neechan told me."

"Sure," I said, though I was feeling nervous about having to do so. I had occasionally combined my Water jutsu with Naruto's Wind, which always worked well together. I had never combined with a different element before.

We quickly formulated a plan. As much as we wanted to capture or kill Suigetsu, he wasn't our priority, Yamato and the prisoners were. Kakashi and I would use our katanas to distract and hopefully immobilize Suigetsu, while Naruto, Sakura, Sai, and Rin would rescue the prisoners.

Using my Byakugan, Kakashi and I made our way close to the camp. My Katana was slung on my back, as usual, the hilt against my right shoulder for a quick draw. Kakashi had unsealed his silver-white hilted katana from a scroll, and was also slung on his back. We finally got behind the former Kiri shinobi and I cast a genjutsu.

"Kai, release!" He quickly detected it and released it within two minutes. Those two minutes were all Kakashi and I needed to get into position.

He smiled when he saw Kakashi and me. "The famous Copy Ninja, and the spineless princess, as Sasuke called you, Hyuga girl. I think I should be honored to face Kakashi."

"You can tell that traitor that I'm not spineless anymore," I snarled back, stung by his casual insult. I drew my blade and began feeding chakra into my katana. "Hidden Whirlpool Secret Ninja Art: Elemental Katana!" The wave of water erupted from my katana and slammed into Suigetsu, carrying him at least a hundred feet away from us.

He managed to regain his feet. "You know my weaknesses."

I replied, "Of course, I'm a water element as well."

His eyes focused on my blade, and then widened in shock. "It can't be! You wield an Uzu katana? Impossible, the village was destroyed during the Third Shinobi War!" He began moving towards us, to try and retaliate.

"The Uzu katanas survived, and now belong to Konohagakure," Kakashi explained. "With the village's acceptance of the last of the Uzu blood, they are beginning to choose wielders again. If I recall correctly, before their destruction, the Uzu Katana Masters were considered to be greater than the Seven Swordsman of the Mist. Hidden Whirlpool Secret Ninja Art: Elemental Katana!" Lightning surged from Kakashi's blade and arced to the water left from my strike, traveling straight to Suigetsu, shocking him severely. Once the main part of the charge had passed, I focused my eyes on him.

"He is still alive, but unconscious from the shock he received," I reported, "The water is still charged from the lightning. If any of us touch it, we will get shocked as well."

"Leave him," Kakashi ordered, "We've done what we needed to do. Sasuke will now know that we have a way to defeat one of his team members." I nodded, sheathed my katana, and headed over to where the prisoners were being kept. Rin and Sakura were performing diagnostic jutsus on them while Naruto and Sai untied them. A groggy Yamato turned to look at us.

"Thank you," he said quietly. "Team Taka found and captured us a day out from Konoha on our way to support your team. Sasuke, Karin, and Jugo went ahead, leaving Suigetsu behind to deal with whoever Konoha sent to rescue us. Sasuke was telling us how Konoha betrayed his clan by forcing Itachi to kill them for something that they were innocent of. He then offered to accept anyone who was as disgusted by their actions as he was to join Taka and help cleanse Konoha of corruption. One of my men, the youngest, decided to join him."

We were all shocked. When Tsunade had woken up from her coma, (and after she had beaten Danzo to a bloody pulp) she had found out how Danzo and the two counselors had overridden the Sandaime Hokage, and forced him to order Itachi to kill the entire clan because the clan was plotting rebellion. For his actions in that, along with the other crimes he had committed, he was executed a week after Tsunade had recovered. The two elders, Homura and Koharu, were imprisoned for the remainder of their lives for their involvement in the Uchiha massacre. The blame was finally removed from Itachi and placed on who it rightly belonged, but some of the villagers had misgivings about the truth of whether the Uchihas were really planning a takeover. The shinobi who defected must have been one of them.

"Don't worry about him now," Kakashi advised Yamato, "He made his choice, and you are not responsible for it, like I am not responsible for Sasuke's, though it feels that way at times. First things first, let's get all of you home before Sasuke decides he's tried of waiting for Suigetsu to come back. None of us are in any shape to take him on. It was good planning and luck that Hinata and I were able to incapacitate him."

"What did you do?"

"We gave him a demonstration on why the Uzu Katana masters were considered to be greater than the Seven Swordsmen." Kakashi laughed as he said that.

Naruto made a couple of Shadow Clones to help support the members of the relief squad, and we slowly made our way back home.

* * *

We stopped at the gates to Konoha and the guards let us in, while summoning some medics to come and retrieve the members of Yamato's squad. Once they were in the medics' capable hands, Rin turned her face to Konoha. Tears made their way down her face as she saw her home for the first time in over ten years.

"Changed a bit, hasn't it, Rin-chan?" Kakashi asked her.

"It's still my home," she replied before taking his hand in hers. Sakura and I both noticed it and smiled. Naruto and Sai didn't notice or just didn't care about what was happening between our sensei and the medic.

"It's amazing, despite the attacks from Otogakure and the Akatsuki, Konoha is still here and going strong," Naruto told her, his arm wrapped around my waist.

I leaned my head against his shoulder, and quietly added, "The will of fire lives on, despite the attempts of others to put it out."

Suddenly, we noticed the rest of the Konoha Twelve coming to meet us, along with Guy-sensei, Kurenai-sensei, and Tsunade-sama. Rin hid behind our group, trying not to attract attention.

Guy was the first to speak. "Oy, Kakashi, my eternal rival, we are tied yet again. This time, you pick the challenge."

We all sweat-dropped in unison. _Doesn't Guy-sensei have anything better to do right now than carry on some dumb rivalry with Kakashi-sensei?_ Kakashi just smirked underneath his mask. "How about this? I have done something which you haven't."

"What is this? Tell me, and then I will tell you if I have also done it."

"Have you ever thought the girl you have had feelings for since you were thirteen was dead, and then fourteen years after her disappearance, you find out she's still alive and has been held as a prisoner of war? On top of that, you find out that you still love her and, miraculously, she still loves you and has forgiven you of all the stupid things you have done?" Kakashi casually said, not betraying what he was feeling at all. Rin stayed hidden behind him, trying not to make a noise.

"When did this happen, and who was this girl?" Guy demanded, obviously wondering if Kakashi was messing with his head.

Rin stepped out from behind Kakashi. "I'm Rin Norita, Konoha Jonin, medical ninja. I was on a squad with Minato Namikaze as my Jonin sensei, and my teammates were Kakashi Hatake and Obito Uchiha." She suddenly narrowed her eyes at Guy, and then widened them in recognition. "I remember you! You were that insane Genin who was assigned to take the Chunin exams with Obito and I, because Kakashi had made Chunin when he was six. You kept challenging Obito to do the most ridiculous things, he told you to shut up, the two of you began fighting, and nearly got us kicked out of the second part of the exam!"

We all began laughing when Rin stopped. Guy and Lee were looking scandalized. Neji spoke up, "He really did that?"

Rin nodded, "He wanted to prove he was better than the students of Konoha's Yellow Flash."

"That explains a lot," Kakashi muttered. "Did he?"

"We all got promoted, but Obito did beat him in the third round finals," Rin smirked. "I'm not sure, and I really don't care."

"Did every member of your squad have the same vibes of coolness?" Guy yelled in frustration.

"Not all of the time. You should have seen us when our sensei had to go somewhere and his girlfriend was put in charge of training us," Kakashi reminisced. "Red Whirlpool was quite the task master."

"And prankster," Rin added, "She never did anything halfway, and made sure we never did, either." She laughed, "I still remember her making out with Minato-sensei right in front of us. Oh, I really miss them all: Obito, Minato-sensei, and Kushina-neechan."

"Kushina did call you the little sister she never had," Tsunade replied. "Welcome home, Rin Norita."

"Tsunade-sama, congratulations on becoming Hokage," Rin replied, bowing slightly.

Tsunade laughed, "Don't congratulate me. The paperwork is a nightmare. It is good to see you again, Rin. I'll expect a full report from you in two weeks time, so I can figure out what I should do about this interesting development in our relations with Iwagakure." She then faced Naruto, Sakura, and me, "I am impressed to hear you three were able to complete your mission on your own without any additional help. Those Jonin trials should be a cakewalk for you three."

"You should know, according to the Iwas, there is now a new set of Konoha Sannin," Rin informed everyone.

"Really?" Tsunade asked, sounding interested. Every one of our friends was hanging on Rin's every word.

"They are the Genjutsu expert and senbon user, Sakura Haruno; the Taijutsu expert and Katana princess, Hinata Hyuga-Uzumaki; and finally, the Ninjutsu expert and kunai fighter, Naruto Uzumaki," Rin announced. "They took care of over fifty Iwa shinobi in less than a month's time. I had been forced to care for the Iwa ninja, and it reminded me a bit of Minato-sensei's handiwork."

Shikamaru commented, "Who would have believed that the next Sannin would be Billboard Brow, the spineless princess, and the hyperactive knuckle head?"

Rin laughed, "That is what they were calling Sakura, Hinata, and Naruto, believe it." We all cracked up at her choice of words. "What's so funny?" she asked, not getting the joke. We all just laughed harder at that.

* * *

A/N, take two: I took a small flight of imagination that Minato's team would have also known Kushina a little bit, considering that she was a ninja as well. All right, time to push the little green button at the bottom and tell me what you think! I do love getting reviews! (What author doesn't?) Just remember, no flames!


	16. Chapter 16

Author's note: Next chapter, and it is time to get ready for the Jonin Trials. This is more of a filler chapter, but it is necessary for what comes later. Thanks to everyone who reviewed, I do love hearing your comments. Just one thing I need to say in response to a review, because I'm trilingual, speaking English, Mandarin Chinese, and Japanese, I am careful how much actual Japanese I use in this fic, otherwise I start throwing Mandarin in as well and not using English grammar. I do it enough when I talk, and it drives my family and friends crazy. Thanks still for pointing it out!

Disclaimer: (Alerya is still wandering around in the hospital)

Tenten: Hi, are you lost?

Alerya: Is it that obvious? I'm looking for the Hokage, can you help me find her?

Tenten: She just got called to the office, something about Konohamaru pulling a Naruto.

Alerya: (giggling) I wonder what type of prank he pulled. Can you help me with the disclaimer, please?

Tenten: Sure. Alerya doesn't own Naruto! Do you want to see those DNA results she has?

Alerya: Yes, I admit. I'm really curious about what they say. See you later, Tenten. Jia you! (Takes off)

Tenten: What does Jia you mean?

* * *

"Finally, all of my paperwork is done for the week," Tsunade sighed as she stretched out in her chair.

I nodded as I sat down in a chair, relieved to be done with all of the filing. "Tsunade-baachan, why am I your new assistant again? Sakura and Ino were your apprentices?"

"Because once your husband decides that he is ready to be acknowledged as Minato Namikaze's only son and heir, I will name him my successor as Hokage. I know you will be his assistant, so I'll train you ahead of time. Besides, I need the help here, and Sakura and Ino are too busy at the hospital."

"He says he will let you make the announcement, once our first child is born," I reminded her, handing her a cup of herbal tea and taking one for myself.

Tsunade got an evil little smirk on her face. "Maybe I should stop sending Naruto on missions without you. Once you have a baby, it means I can retire before this paperwork kills me."

I blushed, "Can't you wait until after our Jonin Trials? I can't take them if I'm pregnant."

"Ah, I can make an exception. I want to have little grandbabies very soon," she replied with a smile, "One of them had better be named after me."

"One will definitely be named after a Hokage, but it will be after the Yondaime," I teased, "Why should I name any daughter of mine after the woman who calls my husband a brat and hits him on the head?"

She laughed appreciatively, "Nice one, Hinata. Do you want to get some dinner? That way you don't have to return to an empty apartment so soon."

"Thank you. This is the longest I haven't seen him for over a year." Naruto, Sai, and Neji were on an extended A-rank mission, and had been gone for almost a month. They were scheduled to be returning home soon. "I haven't slept well since he left. I didn't realize how much I hated being alone until now."

We decided to go to a barbeque and hot pot place not far from the Hokage tower. Tsunade got a small bottle of sake (and not any more if I had anything to say about it) while I got herbal tea. As we ate, we talked about some of the latest antics of Ebisu's squad, also known as Team Konohamaru, my Uzu Katana training with Kakashi, Rin's adjustments to living back in Konoha and how she and Kakashi were officially a couple now, along with the other doings of the Konoha ninja.

"Okay, it's getting late," Tsunade said, almost two hours later. "I'll see you tomorrow, Hinata. Take the morning off to train, practice, I don't care. I just don't want to see you until one in the afternoon."

"Understood, Tsunade-sama," I replied, standing up and gathering my things. "I'll see you tomorrow, and you better not have anymore sake tonight."

"Hinata, you're as bad as Shizune," she muttered, "No, you're worse, I can't hide my sake from your Byakugan."

"I'm just doing my job as your assistant," I gave her a smile, "Good night."

"Good night, Hinata."

As I entered the dark, empty, quiet apartment, I was once again amazed by how strong Naruto was. He had never had anyone waiting for him when he came home after school or after a mission. His father had died sealing the Kyuubi into him, and his mother had died giving birth. I couldn't imagine coming home to this empty place night after night. He had been so lonely, but had always greeted life with a smile. _I wish I had had the courage to befriend him earlier, but I can't change the past._

"Naruto, you will never come home to an empty apartment again. I will always be here to welcome you home," I quietly vowed, my voice echoing slightly. I then went through my usual bedtime routine, showering, changing into pajamas, and fell asleep.

At about midnight, I was woken up by strange noises in from the front room. Still half-asleep, I grabbed my katana and unsheathed it as I snuck into the room.

"Who's there?" I demanded, my blade glinting in the moonlight from the windows. I could see a shadowed figure a few feet in front of me.

"Hinata? I thought that you would greet me with a kiss, not a drawn blade!"

I dropped the katana in shock at hearing my husband's familiar voice. "Naruto!" I jumped into his arms. He quickly caught me and spun me around. "Are you all right? How was the mission? Oh, I missed you so much!" We embraced each other tightly.

"I'm fine, the mission was okay, just boring. Even Neji agreed it was, which tells you something. And, I really missed you, Hinata-hime." He gave me a firm kiss.

"Are you hungry or anything?" I stammered out, suddenly embarrassed about how I had over-reacted.

"No, I'm fine. I just want to shower," he replied, giving me a final squeeze, before reluctantly releasing me from his embrace. "It is good to be home, even when your wife meets you with a drawn weapon," he teased, grinning at me.

I picked up the katana, "I'm sorry. You woke me up and I heard strange noises, so I grabbed my blade to find out what was going on." I shook my head to clear the remaining cobwebs and gave him a quick, sweet kiss, "It is great to have you home. I haven't slept well since you left."

"Me, too. I'll be done in a few minutes." He gave me a final kiss and headed toward the bathroom.

As I put my katana away, I began to get a slightly evil idea. _I know he is exhausted, and I am also, but I really want to welcome him home and let him know he was missed and is loved._ I got into the dresser and found the purple nightgown that Temari had given me five months earlier. I quickly changed into it, feeling my face heat up.

Just as I was finished, Naruto exited the bathroom. He was wearing just a pair of pajama pants. All thoughts of abandoning my idea fled my mind as his blue gaze fixed on me. They visibly darkened with desire, and I felt my own rise. "Hinata-hime?"

"Naruto-kun," I whispered, combing my fingers through his still-damp spiky hair, "I really, really missed you."

"Not as much as I missed you, my Hinata-hime," he softly replied, and then brushed my jaw with his lips.

"I missed you just as much," I huskily insisted, "let me show you." We shared an intense, passionate kiss as I pushed him toward the bed.

The next morning, we woke late due to our getting 'reacquainted' the previous night. The reason we woke up before noon was due to a banging on our apartment door.

"Who is it?" Naruto mumbled, burying his face into my hair, perfectly willing to ignore whoever it was and go back to sleep. We tried, but the banging persisted

"I don't care who it is, I'm making them go away," I said a couple of minutes later, "I don't have to go to the Hokage's office until this afternoon. No one is interrupting us this morning." I found my bathrobe and quickly fastened it as I headed toward the door.

As I opened the door, I was slightly surprised to find Sakura there. She took one look at my appearance and looked away quickly. "What is it, Sakura?" I politely asked.

"Er, I was going to ask you if you wanted to go train with me and Ino this morning," she said, looking everywhere but at me.

"Sorry, but not today. Naruto-kun got home last night and I promised him all of my attention this morning," I told her.

She glanced at me again. "Hinata, you have a bruise on your neck," she muttered, looking away again. "I'll see you both later."

I touched my neck, not surprised I had a mark there. _I also know it's not the only one I have,_ I mentally added. "Oh, good morning, Sakura. Can you please tell Tsunade-baachan that Hinata won't be in today and I'll turn my mission report in tomorrow? Thank you and good day." Naruto quickly shut the door, only in his pajama pants.

"I don't think she'll ever do that again," I giggled, remembering how embarrassed she looked and acted. "She has never acted so awkward."

Naruto laughed with me, "Good, it is rather fun to see her reaction. Shall we get some breakfast since we're already up?"

"Sure," I replied, giving him a kiss. "Now, since I don't have to go to Tsunade's office today, do you have any ideas on what we should do today?"

He gave me a fox-like grin and another kiss, "I may have an idea or two."

* * *

A/N, take two: Hot pot is something that I ate a lot of in Taiwan, but I don't know if they have it in Japan. It's sort of a make your own soup place, and I loved it. I am hoping there are those places here in the States, but I haven't found them yet. Just so you know, the poll about the Rin one shot is still up on my profile, so please vote! Again, I love reading your reviews, so hit the little green button at the bottom and tell me what you think! Flames are not allowed! Thanks again!


	17. Chapter 17

Author's note: Next chapter, and another chapter closer to the Jonin Trials. Hmmm, I wonder what happens? Please read and review, no flames allowed, but I love reading what the readers think!

Disclaimer: (Alerya has finally made it to the Hokage's office)

Tsunade: Ah, Alerya, if that is what your name is, has finally arrived.

Alerya: It's a pen name because I don't want everyone knowing my real name. Sorry, I spent over an hour lost in the hospital. Only my good friend Ryusora knows my real name.

TSunade: I have the results from the DNA test I did, but I am just waiting for some additional people to arrive.

(Naruto, Hinata, Kakashi, and Kurenai walk in)

Tsunade: Now that everyone is here, I can read the results

Alerya: (Underneath her breath) I have a bad feeling about this. (Normal) Before you do, can Kurenai-sensei give the disclaimer?

Kurenai: Alerya doesn't own anything to do with Naruto. Why do you want us here, Tsunade-sama.

(Tsunade grins and opens the results)

Tsunade: These tests have concluded...

* * *

_Whose idea was the six am practice? _I mentally complained as I went through the new set of katana forms Kakashi was teaching me. _Wait, it was Sakura's idea. I think she's been spending way too much time around Lee; she has begun to pick up some of his training habits. Okay, I admit, I didn't want to get out of bed today, because I feel terrible, but our trails are in ten weeks. We have got to be prepared, and I can't do that by lying in bed all day._

I finished the forms and looked at Kakashi for the critique. "Good form and precision, you just need is to work on the speed. Do it again, faster this time." He quickly demonstrated the appropriate speed with his silver-hilted katana.

Instead, I finally gave into the nausea I had been fighting for the past two hours, sheathed my katana, and ran to the edge of the clearing.

"She's sick again?" Sai asked; his voice tinted with amazement. I had been doing this for the past four days.

I would have replied, but I was too busy emptying my stomach. Naruto had come over and was holding my long hair out of my face. When I was finally done, he handed me a canteen so I could rinse the taste out of my mouth. This was becoming a familiar pattern as well.

"Do you feel better now, Hinata-hime?" he whispered into my ear as he embraced me, puke-breath and all.

"A little bit," I replied, "Thank you." I left his embrace and unsheathed my katana. As I faced Kakashi, I stated, "I'm ready now."

"Do you think you can do it?" he pointedly asked.

"I'm a shinobi. If we were on a mission right now, we wouldn't cancel it because I'm not feeling well."

"Okay, if you're willing, go through the forms twice." I did as he asked. Naruto was drilling some taijutsu stances, including a few Juuken ones I had taught him in defiance of my clan's order. He would never become as proficient as a Hyuga, but it was a great way to help him with his chakra control. He had made great strides with it in the seven months we had been married. I was making quick progress with my katana as well. I enjoyed using it, feeling a connection to both my mother-in-law and my own mother every time I used it. I noticed out of the corner of my eye, Sakura casting a genjutsu on Sai to see how long it took him to detect and break it.

As I finished, I began to feel nauseous again, so I sat down and began breathing through my mouth. Kakashi gave me a concerned look, "Are you okay?"

I nodded, feeling the nausea subside slightly, "Yes. Don't worry, besides, don't you have to meet Rin somewhere pretty soon? I can't forget what she said to you about what she would do if you continue to give in to Obito's bad habit." I laughed at that, causing him to laugh as well.

"I can't forget. It's amazing how in some ways she is still the gentle medic that I knew as a kid, and in other ways, she is strong, even stronger than me. I am amazed by her everyday."

Sakura overheard us, "Kakashi-sensei, you'd better make sure that every other male in this village knows she is off-limits. You both aren't getting any younger."

"What are you talking about?" Naruto called out.

"None of your business," Kakashi said, looking a little embarrassed. "I'll see all four of you tomorrow. Keep working on those forms, Hinata. Ja ne!" With that he was gone.

"Hinata, is your stomach bothering you again? Your face looks green," Sakura said, striding over to where I was sitting. "You are coming with me to the hospital, right now. We are taking our Jonin Trials in ten weeks, and everyone needs to be in top shape. We'll find out what is making you sick, treat it, and get back to practicing." She turned to Naruto and Sai, who were listening to her orders. "You two had better be working hard the whole time we are gone. No sense in all of us wasting this time."

"Sakura, I can go on my own," I weakly protested as she helped me to my feet.

"If I come with you, you won't have to wait and we can get back here sooner. I'll perform the exam myself, but I want supplies nearby just in case."

We quickly made our way to the hospital, and Sakura ushered me into an examination room in no time at all. She performed a diagnostic jutsu, and gave me a sharp look.

"What is it?" I nervously asked.

"I need someone to double check this," she replied as she hurried out of the room. Within ten minutes, another medic had arrived and also examined me. She left the room to converse with Sakura outside, which was making me even more nervous. _What is going on? Is it something serious?_

Sakura re-entered the room, calling over her shoulder, "Arigato, Megumi-san."

"Sakura, what is wrong with me?" I demanded, my mind coming up with many different scenarios.

The look on her face was odd, half-furious and half-excited. "Nothing is wrong with you. Hinata, forgive me, but I need to go kill that knucklehead you married."

"What for? He hasn't done anything."

She shook her head, "Congratulations, Hinata. You're pregnant."

"What?" With that, I did something I haven't done in months. I fainted.

* * *

When I came to, Sakura was hovering over me. "Good, you're awake."

I placed my hands on my stomach, "I'm really pregnant?"

She nodded, "Yes, you definitely are. I'm just mad because we just lost our taijutsu expert less than three months before our trials because Naruto knocked you up! Weren't you on birth control?"

"It gives me migraines," I reminded her. "We were always careful, but we might have forgotten a couple of times. It happens."

She sighed, "I've got to inform the Hokage you can't participate."

"Wait!" I blurted out, "Isn't there a way I can still take them? My mobility shouldn't be that impaired, we'll just have to be more careful. We already know Kakashi, Guy, Kurenai, and Anko are our proctors. I'll just use my katana for any fighting I might have to do."

Sakura firmly shook her head, "No, it's not a good idea, Hinata. Too many things could still go wrong. We need to inform Tsunade-shisho."

I shook my head, "No, I am not having my husband be the last to know that I am pregnant. We'll first inform our team, and once all of us have discussed it, we'll inform Tsunade-sama." She couldn't argue with me on that point.

When we arrived back at the training ground, Naruto rushed up to me and asked, "Hinata, are you going to be okay? How are you feeling?"

Sakura immediately smacked him upside the head. "Baka, I am going to hurt you!"

"What did I do, Sakura? I've been working hard this whole time!" he protested.

I shot a glare at the pink-haired, fuming medic, "I'm just as responsible for this. Don't take your anger out on Naruto." I then turned to my utterly confused husband, wrapped my arms around him, and gave him a kiss. "She's mad about the timing, but I am excited and a little nervous. Congratulations, Daddy."

"Hinata? You're…you're…pregnant?" he managed to gasp out before he fainted dead away.

"I thought that was Hinata's thing," Sai remarked, "Sakura, I don't think you need to kill him. It appears Hinata's news already did."

Sakura was not amused by Sai's attempted joke. "Why aren't you mad? We've just lost her for the Jonin Trials. The Hyuga Juuken is the most efficient and deadly taijutsu style in Konoha. How are we going to replace that?"

"Why can't she participate? Being pregnant doesn't hamper her ability to use chakra," he replied, "We can help defend her and it might be an advantage. How many of our proctors will be thrown off be a pregnant shinobi?"

"What, are you suggesting I use a genjutsu to not appear pregnant and then drop it when we are taking the combat portion of our exam? Sai, I don't think it's a good idea, but there might be something we can do," I said, stroking the unconscious Naruto's hair, his head in my lap.

Naruto began to stir, "What happened?"

"Hinata, bring him up to speed," Sakura muttered.

I kissed him on his forehead, "Well, I'm pregnant, Sakura wants me to drop out of the exams, and Sai thinks I can still participate, and conceal it until the combat portion to shock our proctors. What do you think?"

His intense blue eyes locked with mine, "Can we keep you and the baby safe during the exam? If we can't, then no. If we can, let's go ahead. I know you want to make Jonin, and if you drop out now, it will be over a year before you can retake the trials. Let's talk with Tsunade-baachan and see what can be done." He sat up and gave me a kiss and placed a hand on my belly. "I'm very excited about this, Hinata. Just a little shocked about it."

"I know, I feel the same," I whispered.

We entered the Hokage's office to find Tsunade complaining about her paperwork yet again. (With the training my team had been doing recently, I was only in to help her during the afternoons.)

Sakura, in her usual direct way, spoke first, "Tsunade-shisho, are the any precautions that the proctors can take during the Jonin trials in order to accommodate a pregnant shinobi?"

Tsunade started with surprise, "Who is this Jonin candidate we need to accommodate?"

"It's me, Tsunade-sama. We found out this morning," I told her, blushing up a storm. Naruto held my hand in his, trying to hide his smile.

"You're pregnant?" At our nod, she practically jumped over her desk and hugged us both. "I'm going to be a grandmother! Don't you dare say it, Naruto! How far along are you, Hinata?"

"I don't know, Sakura didn't tell me," I replied.

"I'm not sure how to tell, I've never done pre-natal before," Sakura defended herself.

"Let me find out." Tsunade made me sit down while she performed a jutsu. She gave a small laugh, "Remember the night when I told you I wanted grandbabies very soon?"

"Yes," I replied. That had been the night Naruto had returned from that long mission and we celebrated being reunited. The next morning we had embarrassed Sakura by answering the door in our nightclothes.

"That's when it happened." She laughed again, "You're six weeks along, Hinata. I'll warn your proctors that they must be careful with you during your combat test, or they will face my wrath."

"So, it is safe for her to participate?" Naruto asked.

"Actually, if I could get away with it, Sakura, Hinata, and you could skip the combat portion because you proved yourselves during that encounter with those Iwa rouges. Don't worry, I'll tell them to go easy on Hinata due to a health issue, and it will be okay."

"Good, but I want to tell Kurenai," I said.

"She can still participate?" Sakura double checked. At Tsunade's nod, she sighed, "Okay, I won't kill Naruto since we haven't lost out taijutsu specialist."

"Thank you or I would have had to kill you," I jokingly replied.

"Is team practice over for the day?" Sai asked, "I need to stop be the art supply shop."

"To pick up some more brushes or to see Yume?" Sakura asked.

The ink-user blushed bright red, "Since we will have to compensate for Hinata, I need to be prepared." None of us were convinced.

"Sai has a girlfriend, Sai has a girlfriend," Naruto said in a sing-song tone.

"Shut up, Kitsune," Sai said, blushing harder. We just laughed harder.

* * *

A/N, take two: How could Hinata not suspect? Simple, she's been busy, and I know from experince that if a girl is very phisically active, it throws her timing off. What will they have to do? How will everyone react? Please read and review, like I said before, no flames allowed. Sometimes I don't like the way I write, but that is why I do this, to improve, and it is al lot of fun. Ja ne!  


* * *


	18. Chapter 18

Author's note: Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially those who said it was crazy for Hinata to still take her Jonin Trials. That just means that no one has an idea what I am going to do. Muwahaha, evil genius present. Wait, where did that come from? I think I picked it up from one of my anatomy teachers. Oh well, go ahead and enjoy! If you can guess what they are going to do, I will make you my ultra-special secret recipe virtual ramen! (I actually have a secret ramen recipe I make, I am not joking)

Disclaimer:

Tsunade: The results say that you are the daughter of Naruto and Hinata.

Naruto: How is that possible? She looks older than me!

(Hinata faints and Naruto manages to catch her in time)

Alerya: Kai, release! (Byebye genjustu) My real name is Sayuri Namikaze. (She is about sixteen years old, has her mother's figure, long blonde hair and lavendar Byakugan eyes)

Sayuri: Alerya is a friend of mine that I am letting tell my parents story. By the way, she doesn't own anything to do with Naruto, just myself and my siblings!

Kurenai: (completely shocked) When were you born?

Sayuri: Can't say.

Kakashi: Why do you have the same clan name as my sensei?

Sayuri: Figure it out, Copy Ninja. Who in this room looks the most like the Yondaime?

Kakashi: NANI?

* * *

"I insist that Hinata is having twins, Sakura. That's why she is measuring so big and I distinctly hear two heartbeats."

"I still say it is just one baby, Tsunade-shisho. Hinata is built petite, which is why she is so big, and I only hear one heartbeat. The other you occasionally hear is Hinata's!"

Tsunade smirked, "Want to put your money where your mouth is, Sakura Haruno?"

"What's the wager?"

"I will get another medic to examine Hinata. If she can prove you are correct, I will have to provide half of the clothing needed. If I am, you will."

"Are you joking?"

"Nope. Are you going to put your money where your mouth is, or are you just not confident enough in your assessment?"

Sakura nodded firmly, "I'm in." She paused, "If you win, Tsunade-shisho, what will the bad omen be?"

"Simple, two chibi-Narutos running around instead of just one," Tsunade replied with a mock shudder. "I'll go get Rin, she can confirm. She has plenty of experience with pre-natal care."

I glanced at Naruto and grinned, "Hey, I like this idea. We just get to approve all colors and styles of the clothes bought."

He smiled, rubbing one hand on my visibly rounded stomach. It was quite obvious I was pregnant, and I was barely beginning my fourth month! "Yes, we have no problem at all with someone else buying half the clothes we will need."

It was my bi-weekly check up, and we were scheduled to take our final exam of our Jonin trials the next day. The written and competency exams were a breeze, but the combat was by far the hardest one, and the one that worried my team the most.

Tsunade left to find Rin, and Sakura turned to us, "Our plan is still on for tomorrow?"

I nodded, "Most everyone thinks I'm crazy for taking the Trials, but I love this idea, thanks to my brilliant husband."

Naruto blushed at my statement, "Hey, I'm just good at pulling pranks and I know better than anyone else here how to use Shadow Clones. That way Hinata can still take her Trials, but stay safe and protect our babies."

Sakura groaned, "You also believe it is twins? Why do I have a feeling I have been set up with this bet?"

"No, we don't know for sure," I reassured her, "We just think Tsunade-sama is right because she is more experienced than you are." Two weeks ago, when Tsunade had informed us of the possibility of twins, Naruto had nearly hit the ceiling with excitement. He was absolutely in love with the idea of being a father, and when he had heard the word 'twins' he became even more excited.

He rubbed his hand across my belly again, and was rewarded with a kick, causing his face to light up with joy. "These little ones are going to be very strong," he said. I had to smile at him.

Just then Tsunade and Rin entered the room. "Okay, you want me to confirm the possibility that Hinata is having twins?" Tsunade nodded, and Rin placed her hands on my stomach. They softly glowed with chakra as she performed her own diagnostic jutsu.

I studied her as she worked. The hardness that had marked her when we rescued her from the Iwas was now almost completely gone. In its place was strength and you could easily see her kind heart. She had confided in us that the only thing she missed about Iwagakure were two orphans she had been teaching medical Ninjutsu to. She was able to write to them, and they would soon be coming for a visit, much to her pleasure.

She opened her eyes, and grinned, a sparkle in her soft brown eyes, "Naruto, Hinata, you had better have some more names picked out. You are having twins."

"Wahoo!" Naruto yelled. I began to laugh while Sakura covered her face with her hands in defeat.

Rin smiled, "I can tell you this as well. They are fraternal twins, not identical. Do you want to know the genders?"

"No, we want to be surprised," I told her.

She nodded, and then stared me down, "Hinata, are you seriously going to participate in those trials tomorrow? Even if the proctors show restraint, it is too much of a risk for you and your babies to participate!"

"Rin, you must promise me you won't tell Kakashi-sensei," I said. She nodded, looking puzzled, "I will be there, yet I won't." I them performed the hand signs of a certain jutsu, and she got our plan immediately.

"That is very clever, you three," she said, "Whose idea was it?"

"Naruto and Tsunade's," Sakura replied, "Hinata has to be there, but the rules never state it has to be _Hinata_."

"I wish I could see the looks on their faces when they realize what you have planned for them." Rin checked her watch quickly, "I'd better get going, Kurenai and Anko invited me for a girl's night out, and I'm running late. I promise I won't tell them either."

She left, and Tsunade said, "Okay, you are done for today. So far, a very healthy mother and babies, I am glad to say. Good luck with your trial tomorrow and get a good night's rest. Remember, it begins at eleven o'clock tomorrow morning."

"If Kakashi-sensei is late, can we burn all of his books?" I asked.

"Too late, Rin beat you to it," Tsunade said with a laugh. "She did allow him to keep one, however. It was one previously owned by their sensei, so it had a lot of sentimental value. Not to mention, it was the only non-perverted book Jiraiya ever wrote. It actually is very good."

She gave us both hugs and patted my stomach. Sakura waved to us, still a little upset at losing the bet. We left the examination room and headed outside.

"Did your appointment just end, Hinata?" a familiar voice called out.

"Iruka-sensei!" Naruto called out in reply, "Yeah, we just got done. You won't believe what Tsunade-baachan told us."

"What?" he asked, looking curious.

I blushed, "We're having fraternal twins, Iruka-sensei."

"Congratulations, you two. I guess I have to look forward to being godfather to two babies." Iruka rubbed the back of his head. "Well, do you two want some ramen before your big day? My treat, consider it good luck for tomorrow."

"Sure," I said, "I've been craving a bowl of Ichiraku beef ramen all week."

"I wonder why," he laughed, "Hinata, your appetite for ramen is beginning to surpass Naruto's."

"Not my fault," I laughed, "I'm all for it."

"Hey, it just means our babies have good taste," Naruto replied, "You never have morning sickness when you have eaten ramen the night before."

All three of us ate and talked for over an hour. Both Teuchi and Ayame wished us luck and told us their concerns about my participation.

"Don't worry," I said, "They won't be able to get close to me."

"You two are just so young to become parents and Jonin," Ayame whispered in my ear, "You're only seventeen."

"We've been considered adults ever since we received our hitai-ites," I replied, tapping mine on my neck. "We'll see you tomorrow and tell you how and what we did. Good night!"

Iruka gave us both hugs, and as we left the shop, we overheard Ayame sigh to Iruka, "They make such a cute couple. I am so glad Naruto found such a wonderful girl as Hinata. He's helped her become much stronger, and she's helped him calm down and become more focused. I don't think I have ever seen him happier than when he told us that he and Hinata were expecting."

"I know what you mean," Iruka replied, "I was the first person they told outside of their team when they got the news. One of the best moments of my life was when they asked if I would be the baby's godfather." He paused for a moment, and continued, "They have both changed so much from their days at the academy. Hinata had such a crush on Naruto that she would faint if she ever got within two feet of him. Naruto didn't help much since he was completely oblivious to her feelings, but was always kind to her. I wanted to assign them to the same team, but I chose not to, because it would have been asking for trouble to have a Hyuga and an Uchiha on the same squad. I'm positive that they will become Jonin tomorrow, and Hinata will remain perfectly safe. I don't know what they are doing, but it will be a shocker, that's certain."

"Iruka, is it just me, or is Naruto starting to look a lot like the Fourth Hokage? I remember seeing him when I was a child, and to me, Naruto looks just like him, just with whisker marks."

We didn't hear Iruka's answer to Ayame's question. I began to giggle and Naruto just rolled his eyes. He was proud to be the son of Minato Namikaze, but didn't want everyone to start respecting him and treating him differently because of what his true name was. I understood perfectly, having been raised a Main Branch Hyuga.

We entered our new apartment and began preparing for the next day. We had moved here only last week, needing a bigger place for when the babies arrived. It was bigger, and much closer to the Hokage's tower, making it easier for me to get there when I was scheduled to work for Tsunade. Naruto was packing kunai, shuriken, and various other ninja tools. I was checking my katana, and working on a few sealing scrolls. I had begun studying fuuinjutsu with a passion after my discussion with Hiashi and the elders of my former clan, determined to free Neji from the curse seal and have him become the clan head in my place. I had made great strides with it, and it was a major part of our plan for the next day. I was still a long way from designing a seal removal for the Caged Bird, but I was allowed to study the notes of Jiraiya and the Yondaime, which was helping me a lot.

"All of those seals ready, Hinata-hime?"

"Yes, I can't wait to see how they react when they realize what the four of us have in store for them."

"That will be classic," he agreed. "We'd better have our cameras ready, otherwise Tsunade-baachan, Iruka-sensei, and Rin-bachan will kill us."

"I think we'll survive if we don't," I replied, and gave him a kiss. "Let's get some sleep. I have a feeling we'll need it."

"I agree. Let's show them tomorrow what all four of us can do."

* * *

A/N, Take two: Yeah, another chapter completed, and Iruka-sensei finally makes an appearance! I think I had lost him somewhere and now, he is found! It is my favorite holiday this weekend, Halloween, and I am dressing up as Alice Cullen from Twilight. That will be fun, and I can't wait. Happy Halloween, my wonderful readers! I'll try to update as soon as I can! Please leave a review, and just remember, no flames allowed!


	19. Chapter 19

Author's Note: Here they are, the Jonin Trials have finally arrived! Just wait until you read the whole chapter before you make any judgments on it. I am a little weak at writing fight scenes, but I got to throw in some more stuff from the Uzu Katanas! If any of you have any ideas for jutsus I can use for the Katanas, please let me know. I got the idea for one of them off of InuYasha, but I need some more ideas, please! Let's see how Hinata will participate and not be in any danger! Please read and review, just please, no flames. If you absolutely hate the story, you don't have to keep reading it or anything else I write.

Disclaimer: no imagination for a funny disclaimer today, for I will have to do it. I don't own anything to do with Naruto! if I did, NaruHina would be canon, Sasuke would get what he deserves or get his ego deflated and head screwed on straight (Whichever I am in the mood for) and Sakura would realize she has lost any chance she might have had with Naruto!

* * *

"You have six hours to avoid capture and attempt to capture your four opponents," Tsunade informed us. "If they capture you, you are out. If you manage to capture all of them before the time ends, or they capture all of you, the trial is over. Remember, you can all get captured and still pass, it just depends on how well you fight and if you impress your proctors with your skills. You have fifteen minutes to prepare for your proctors. I have informed them that if they severely injure a certain person, I will hurt them worse than I ever hurt Jiraiya. Good luck!"

We all quickly cast genjutsus, helping us blend into our surroundings. As we made our way to the center of the forested training ground, we set several traps for our proctors, using the skills and tactics we had developed during our clash with the Iwas five and a half months ago. Once we had arrived at our previously chosen site (Got to love Shadow Clones), Naruto and I quickly bit our thumbs and Summoned our allies.

"Yo, Naruto, what's up?" Gamakichi asked, "I like this new look of yours."

Gamatatsu added, "How's your wife?"

"I'm right here," _In a way_, I mentally added. I turned to my summons, the ninken whose contract Kakashi had me sign before he fell into that coma-like state during our mission against the Iwas. "Pakkun, can you and the others keep an eye out for Kakashi, Anko, Guy, and Kurenai? We need some advanced warning when they get close to us."

"Gamakichi, Gamatatsu, can you do you best to distract them and delay them. The more time we can eat up, the better," Naruto said, "Also, Anko can summon snakes, so care you take care of them?"

"Sure, do I get any snacks?"

"Once our Trial is done," Naruto promised.

"We'll get to work," Pakkun said, "Did you set any traps?"

"Quite a few, both standard and genjutsu traps," I said, "I'm sure they'll be able to avoid most of them, but it will slow them down." I gave him a friendly scratch behind the ears.

"Thanks, Hinata. Congratulations on the babies," Pakkun said as they all scattered.

"When did Hinata get pregnant?" Gamatatsu asked.

"Four months ago, dolt. Haven't you been listening to the gossip back home? We'll be getting some new summoners in a few years when those twins are old enough."

"Go, Naruto!"

"Shut up!" With that, they were gone.

"Naruto, couldn't you have summoned any smaller toads?" Sai asked.

"Yes, but I work best with Kichi and Tatsu, and their job isn't to scout, it is to distract and delay, so their size will come in handy," Naruto replied.

"Now, what do we do?" Sakura asked.

Sai gave us a fairly evil smile, not much different than his usual creepy one, to tell you the truth, "We prepare for the arrival of our proctors. Let's review. We hide and cast another genjutsu."

"Kurenai will release it and they will see Hinata supposedly all alone," Sakura continued.

"That should give them a moment of confusion, which we'll take advantage of to attack and separate them. Naruto will take Guy, Sai will face Anko, Sakura will handle Kurenai, and I'll take care of Kakashi," I said, drawing my katana in preparation.

"Should I Juuken Guy?" Naruto asked.

"I wouldn't advise it. Even with your improved control, you might send too much chakra and accidentally kill him," I replied.

"Please don't or my boyfriend will challenge you to a duel," Sakura replied, trying not to smile.

I loosened my scroll of seals to ready it for combat. Naruto continued, "We need to keep going long enough for Hinata to trap Kakashi with one of her seals and prepare the rest of them for the others. Then we lead them back here and she'll seal them."

"This had better work," Sakura murmured, fingering her senbons nervously. She had coated a few with a paralyzing toxin, that she would use incase my seals failed. We all nodded, and stayed quiet, Sakura ready to cast a genjutsu for when the four proctors got close enough.

Thirty minutes later, Pakkun came up to us. "They are about ten to fifteen minutes away from here. They have avoided the majority of your physical traps, but have triggered a few of your genjutsu ones. Gamakichi and Gamatatsu have forced them into a few traps, and gotten rid of every snake Anko had summoned. Kakashi is frustrated that Hinata has already summoned us, and Kurenai is complaining that Hinata shouldn't even be here right now. Be careful, they are annoyed."

"We'll survive," Naruto said, "Believe it, I've been annoying Jonin since I was at the Academy."

"Thank you, Pakkun," I whispered, "Please stay nearby, in case something happens and I need Naruto here right away." The pug nodded, he was aware of our plan, his nose clueing him in, and disappeared.

Sai and Sakura quickly disappeared into the trees, while Naruto lingered a few minutes to give me a kiss and whisper good luck. He disappeared into the trees, which was the cue for me to activate my Byakugan. I could see the four proctors, the summon animals, and many of the other animals of the forest. I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing when Guy stumbled into a family of rabbits trying to avoid Gamatatsu's Water Bullet.

As they approached my position, Sakura cast a genjutsu so the clearing would appear empty. It took effect right as they entered the clearing, perfect timing on Sakura's part.

They all noticed it. "Not another genjutsu!" Anko griped, obviously short tempered at the moment.

"I thought your team was more ninjutsu than genjutsu, Kakashi," Kurenai sighed, "Kai, release!"

The final genjutsu was dispelled. "Hinata, why are you here all alone?" Kurenai questioned, "Oh, when I find that knucklehead you married, I am going to beat him for leaving you alone when you can't defend yourself. You shouldn't even be here, Hinata! What were you thinking?"

I smiled at her, "Just this." I quickly raised my katana and said, "Hidden Whirlpool Secret Ninja Art: Elemental Katana!" My attack went straight towards Kakashi, leaving him no where to run. That was the signal for the others to attack.

Naruto sprang out and tackled Guy, who had also caught a part of my attack. Sai trapped Anko with some of his Ink jutsus, and Kurenai got caught in a shower of senbon from Sakura. Kakashi drew his katana against me and began to aim an attack. Before it could reach me, I used another Whirlpool jutsu I had recently discovered, the Elemental Backlash. It could turn an attack against the caster using your own chakra element.

Kakashi managed to dodge the electrically charged water in time, and I moved in. His Sharingan was uncovered, but I had an ace up my sleeve. I quickly formed a set on five handsigns, "Ginkagami Byakugan!" The Silver Mirror Byakugan, the upper level of my kekkei genkai with the ability to reflect other dojutsus back on their casters. It was only passed along genetically, and as both my father and mother had it, both Hanabi and I had the potential to unlock it, which normally happened around the ages of seventeen and eighteen. I had unlocked it during the Iwa mission, but didn't tell anyone other than Naruto, Sakura, Sai, and Neji. The clan elders were mad enough at me for carrying the 'demon scum's' babies, I didn't need to add fuel to the fire by informing them about the Ginkagami.

Kakashi's Sharingan was ineffective against my Ginkagami, and he began backing away as I tried to get him into my range. I soon had him where I wanted, and quickly formed a handsign. "Seal!" I yelled.

I had forced him into an area where I had earlier placed an Entrapment seal, and once he was within range, activated it. He was stuck there until I removed the seal, which just prevented him from leaving the area and prevented any jutsu from crossing the border.

"When did you learn how to perform Fuuinjutsu?" he asked in shock.

"I've been studying it for the past ten months," I replied, "Apparently I have a knack for it, which is a good thing. I am trying to devise a seal removal for the Caged Bird, so Neji can take my place as the clan heir. You can't get free until I release you."

"Good idea," he agreed, and watched me as I placed three other Entrapment seals in strategic places around the clearing. "Guy is never going to let me forget I got defeated by a pregnant shinobi."

"It's okay," I replied, gathering my chakra to seal again.

"What did you have to do to convince Tsunade to let you take the Trials?"

"She wasn't the hard one, it was my husband," I replied, "Don't worry, you'll find out soon enough."

Naruto came in with a flash of yellow, "Ready, Hinata-hime?"

I formed the handsign, "Ready, Naruto-kun!"

Guy came running in and happened to tread near one of my seals. In less than two seconds, he was trapped.

"When did Hinata learn fuuinjutsu?" Guy asked Kakashi, who was now reading a book with his hitai-ite covering his Sharingan eye. Typical Kakashi, at least Rin stopped him from reading those porn novels.

"Apparently she's a sealing genius," Kakashi replied. "I didn't teach her, if that's what you're asking."

Sai came in, running for his life, being chased by a blood thirsty Anko. "How dare you call me ugly with a horrible temper! And I am not the snake lady!"

"Seal!" Anko was caught, but didn't notice because she was still too busy yelling at Sai.

We turned to our teammate and stared at him. "What did you say to her?" Naruto gasped out, "I've never seen Anko so mad before!"

Sai just looked at the two of us, "Can't you guess? I needed her to follow me, and she did. I told her a few things that Sakura, Hinata, and Yume tell me I should never say to a girl, and it worked. She chased me." He took out his sketch book and began working. "All we need is Sakura."

I gathered my charka for a final time, just as Sakura came running in, senbon in hand. In a few seconds, Kurenai followed, and was caught by my seal.

"I can't believe we got schooled by a bunch of Chunin," Anko muttered, having finally stopped swearing at Sai after he apologized and told her he just needed her to follow him.

"Hinata, what are you doing here? Naruto, how dare you be so irresponsible as to allow her to be here in her condition!" Kurenai yelled.

I smiled, as my husband grinned, "I'm actually in the Hokage's office with Tsunade. I'm a Shadow Clone that Naruto reinforced with some of his chakra." I turned and gave my husband a firm kiss, "I'll let Tsunade-baachan know that this trial is done, and come and meet you. Ja ne!" With that, I dispelled.

* * *

I opened my eyes as I processed the information that I had received from my clone who had taken the trial in my place. "Tsunade, Kakashi, Kurenai, Guy, and Anko have all been trapped in my seals. We'd better hurry over there so I can release them. Anko really wants to kill Sai for insulting her."

Tsunade shook her head, "I wonder what he said this time. How does that kid even have a girlfriend with his social ineptness?"

"Yume is very patient and willing to help him," I replied, "Not to mention, she also likes to draw and paint." I placed my hand on my stomach where my babies were kicking. "We did it. I got to take my trials, but wasn't anywhere close to the action. Thank heavens for Shadow clones."

"How did your father react to your pregnancy?" Tsunade asked.

"Since I'm shunned by the clan, Neji told him in my place. He said that he didn't seem happy, but he wasn't mad either. I don't know what he thinks about it. Perhaps the elders will lift the order to shun me when you announce to the village Naruto's true name and clan after these two are born, I'll find out for certain. Neji and Hanabi can get away ignoring the order, but being the clan head, he has to be the example and must shun me." I shrugged, "I understand why. If he loses his place, he can no longer protect me and my babies from the seal, and if I am sealed, I'll lose the Ginkagami."

"We'll need your ability for when we face Team Taka," Tsunade said, "They have killed a team of shinobi that were heading to Hidden Waterfall, protecting a caravan. We'll have to deal with him soon."

"Poor Naruto," I whispered, "he still hopes that the good in Sasuke is still alive, but I can't bear to tell him this. It will crush that hope."

"That's why you will be with him, Hinata-chan," Tsunade said, wrapping her arm around my shoulders in a comforting fashion. "He will need you to help deal with that. Come on, we have some Jonin candidates to congratulate, and you are among them."

* * *

A/N, Take two: To answer a reviewer's question, the only people who know Naruto is the Yondaime's son are: Hinata, Tsunade, Hiashi, Kakashi, Rin, Sakura, and Sai. The village will find out when Naruto decides it is time. Thanks so much for your reviews! Zaijian! Let me know what you think, just no flames allowed! BTW, Ginkagami literally means "silver mirror' and it is something I came up with, but a few other people helped me develop it. There are a few other things it can do, bit it's primary strength is it's ability to reflect other dojutsus, hence the name, silver mirror.


	20. Chapter 20

Author's note: Time to announce the promotions and celebrate! Shinobi and spiked punch, I wonder what will happen? I have a new poll up on my profile, asking you to vote on who you think should receive an Uzu katana! I still need ideas for katana jutsu, so don't be afraid to suggest some to me. Trust me, they can't be as bad as some of the ones I've thought up. Please read, review, vote, and share ideas! just no flames please!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, but my friends and I own the pranks in this chapter!

* * *

We quickly arrived at the clearing to see the proctors still trapped by my seals and my teammates resting. When Naruto saw me, he quickly got to his feet and gave me a long, sweet kiss. Once we were done, I turned to Kurenai, "Are you still going to beat him up? I was perfectly safe the whole time."

She sighed, "I won't, since you used Shadow Clones, I knew it had to be his idea."

"Good thing it worked," Naruto replied, wrapping his arm around me and holding me close.

"The lovey-dovey stuff is cute and all," Anko said, "but when are you going to release these seals you have us trapped in?"

"You will not be loosed until I am sure you won't kill Sai," I replied, "It would make his girlfriend angry." She growled and ground her teeth at that while we all enjoyed a laugh at her expense.

I released the others and once I had released Kurenai, she asked, "Hinata, do you have any ideas on what you will name your babies?" I had been so busy training for this and working with Tsunade (more like making sure she does her work), we hadn't had much of a chance to talk lately.

"We have decided on names for both a boy and a girl," I replied, "Minato for a boy, and Sayuri for a girl. We will have to come up with two more, since we don't know what exactly we're having."

"Minato, after the Yondaime Hokage?" Anko asked, eyebrows raised as I removed the seal entrapping her.

"Why not? He saved the village, he taught Kakashi-sensei and Rin-neechan, Ero-sennin taught him, and I've learned several of his jutsus," Naruto replied, "It just feels right."

"I like them. They are youthful and powerful names!"

"Er, thank you, Guy-sensei," I said. "Come on, the others should be waiting for us outside of the training ground. Gaara, Matsuri, Temari, and Kankuro are also with them."

All of the Konoha Twelve, with the exception of Neji, had taken our Jonin Trials this week and my team had been the last to take the combat exam. Now all we had to do was wait for our proctors to confer with the Hokage before we could learn the results. We met up with our friends as we made our way back to the Hokage Tower, where we would await the results, how ever long that could take.

* * *

All eleven of us Jonin candidates stood in front of Tsunade and our proctors, ready to hear the results of our trials. The air was thick with tension and anticipation. I pressed my hand against my stomach, feeling movement from my babies.

"How are they?" Naruto asked.

"Excited, they can't stop moving," I whispered back to him. "They are very energetic, just like you." He grinned proudly and gave me a kiss.

Just then, Tsunade stepped forward, "Congratulations, all of you. Your proctors have been very impressed with your results. I will announce the new ranks, starting with Team Guy. Neji Hyuga has already been a Jonin for two years now. Tenten, Jonin. Rock Lee, Tokubetsu Jonin, Taijutsu combat specialist. Chouji Akimichi, Tokubetsu Jonin, Combat specialist. Team Kurenai: Shino Aburame, Jonin. Kiba Inuzuka, Tokubetsu Jonin, Tracking specialist. Shikamaru Nara, Jonin. Ino Yamanaka, Tokubetsu Jonin, Infiltration and Interrogation specialist. Finally, Team Kakashi: Sai, Jonin. Sakura Haruno, Jonin. Hinata Hyuga-Uzumaki, Jonin. Naruto Uzumaki, Jonin. Congratulations to all of you on your promotions."

Kakashi was the first to speak up, "All of mine made full Jonin, I win the pot!"

"You bet on us!" Sakura exclaimed, looking ashamed.

"We all made bets on our teams, we did the same thing during your first Chunin exams as well," Guy replied, giving everyone a grin.

We all rolled our eyes at that. Gaara spoke up, his new bride Matsuri at his side. "Congratulations to all of you."

"Party!" Kankuro yelled.

"Hinata, when are you due and what are you having?" Temari demanded, "You forgot to mention those little details in your letters."

"I'm due in five months, and I'm having fraternal twins, we just don't know if it's two boys, two girls, or one of each," I told her, smiling.

"Come on, we need to have a party!" Kankuro called out over the chatter. "We are all Jonin now, we need to celebrate! Where, when, and I'm providing the drinks!"

"Kankuro, no, you will not. You are one of the advisors to the Kazekage. Act like it," Gaara said, sounding disdainful and threatening at the same time.

That cowed Kankuro. He quickly shut up. "Well, we could do something to celebrate," Tenten mused, "Maybe we could also throw a baby shower for Naruto and Hinata as well, since we are all here."

"The twins aren't arriving for another five months," Naruto pointed out.

"So what? This way Matsuri and I can be here," Temari pointed out, "I even brought gifts."

"I missed your wedding because of a mission, and I don't want to miss this," Matsuri added.

"Temari even made us bring gifts for the babies as well," Gaara said, rolling his eyes.

"What are the odds we get a puppet from Kankuro and something made out of sand from Gaara?" Naruto whispered in my ear. I giggled at the thought.

"We will burn any puppets we receive, okay?" He nodded approvingly.

"Naruto and Hinata have a rather large apartment," Kiba pointed out, "Maybe we could hold it there."

"No way!" we said in unison.

"But there is the roof of our apartment complex, and we could use that," Naruto pointed out. "The building manager told us that we could use it tonight to celebrate if we wanted to, we just have to keep the noise to a moderate level."

"Let's head over!"

True to his word, the manager let us use the roof for the party. That evening, everything was in place, and we were all celebrating our promotions. I stayed at the edge of the crowd, feeling tired and unusually drained of energy. Naruto was with me and willingly getting me everything I needed so I could sit down and rest.

"What's Kankuro doing by the punch bowl?" he abruptly asked.

I quickly activated my Byakugan, "It looks like he's spiking it with some sake from Tsunade's private stash. It's one of her old medicine bottles."

"Baachan must have slipped it to him. She did mention she was going to stop by later," Naruto mused, "No more punch for us."

Sai joined us, sketch book in hand, "Did you also see what Kankuro did? Should we warn everyone?"

"No, we'll just need to stop Lee if he drinks any," Naruto said, putting his feet up on the small table in front of us. "Where's Yume? I thought she would be here celebrating with you."

"She had to stay home tonight. Her grandfather isn't feeling well so she is caring for him," he replied. "I understand about Lee. You all have mentioned his famous Drunken Fist. I have my camera ready and waiting to blackmail people."

"Sai, where did you learn to do that?" I asked, trying not to laugh.

"I used to be in ROOT," he replied, sounding stiff, and then he blushed, "Actually, I learned it from Shikamaru. You won't believe the blackmail he has collected over the years."

"I don't even want to know what he has on me," Naruto muttered, "I can see him doing that, except I thought he would think of it as too troublesome."

"Likewise," Sai agreed. We all sat back to enjoy our friends and comrades make fools of themselves. Almost everyone helped themselves to the punch. Even Shino had a glass, which shocked us, and in five minutes he was sleeping against the wall. Within ten minutes, everyone except Naruto, Sai, Temari, Gaara, Matsuri, and me were fast asleep.

"What did Kankuro spike the punch with?" Temari asked in amazement.

I picked up the bottle, smelled it, and began laughing my head off. "Try a sleeping draught. Tsunade will try to hide her sake from Sakura and I by putting it in old medicine bottles, and mixing it with the various medicines she uses." I shook my head in amazement, "She must have given Kankuro the wrong bottle. They'll be asleep for at least nine hours."

A grin grew on Naruto's face as the prankster in him came to life. "Why don't we get some blackmail on them? Sai, do you have your art supplies?"

Sai nodded, "Let's get started. I can always visit Yume's shop if I need to restock."

"I want to help as well," Temari said, "and I call dibs on Kankuro. Just be nice to my fiancé, please." She waved a hand with a new ring on it at us.

"Shikamaru finally popped the question? About time. Let's get to work!"

"Can I not participate?" Gaara asked.

"Sure." Naruto looked at me, "Hinata, if you want, I won't get Neji, Shino, or Kiba."

"Just be nice to Neji and Shino. Have fun with Kiba." I laughed. Gaara sat next to me while Naruto, Sai, Temari, and Matsuri went wild.

"You seem very happy with Naruto," Gaara stated.

"Like you and Matsuri. We are very happy. He accepts me for who I am, weaknesses and all," I replied, "I do the same for him. My clan doesn't approve of our marriage, but I refused to let them order me around anymore." I gently caressed my belly, feeling the movements of the babies I carried. "I love Naruto, and even though I am shunned and disinherited by my clan, I still have a family. He is my most precious person and I am his. I've loved him since I was eight, but wasn't able to admit until I was sixteen, when the Akatsuki attacked."

"You two sound very much like Matsuri and I. I am still trying to understand what love is, and she is helping me with it."

"I don't think anyone completely understands love, it takes so many different forms," I replied. "But I know I love Naruto with all my heart, and already love our babies, even though I have never seen or held them yet."

"Interesting," Gaara murmured, "I wonder if my parents felt the same way about each other. My father sacrificed my mother's life to implant Shukaku in me. I know Naruto would never do something like that to you, and I can't imagine doing something like that to Matsuri. No amount of power is worth her life."

I decided to change the topic a little bit. "Do you want to feel our babies kick?" I asked. "They are currently very active."

Gaara looked a little apprehensive, but I guided his hand and placed it carefully. "Is that them?" he asked, looking interested, which was quite the show of emotion for him.

"Smile!" Temari said, as she snapped a picture of Gaara with his hand on my stomach.

"Temari…" Gaara growled.

"What? It is a cute picture. Have you never been around a pregnant woman before?"

"No, I haven't."

"Well, practice around Hinata. I think it won't be long before Matsuri is carrying your child," she teased. Gaara turned bright red, almost matching his hair.

"What did you do to Kankuro?" I asked, eager to change the subject. Gaara was starting to look a little upset.

"Take a look," she said, moving aside. I burst out laughing. Kankuro was out of his cat's pajamas and his war paint was removed. She had done his hair like Shikamaru's, and put him in an orange jumpsuit similar to what Naruto wore when he was twelve. His hitai-ite was around his waist like how Ino and Lee wear theirs, and he had on sunglasses like Shino.

"Oh, my goodness," I gasped out, clutching my stomach. "Temari, remind me to never get you mad."

"Remind your husband, you're too cute for me to ever do that to. Do you want to open your gifts?"

"Naruto, come over here," I called out as Temari pulled two wrapped presents out of a sealing scroll. We each took one and quickly opened them. Inside one was a teddy bear and the other held a doll.

"When Gaara was little, his favorite toy was a teddy bear," she smirked, "and I think every little girl should have a doll."

"Like you did?" Gaara retorted.

She blushed, "You said you would never mention Mei!"

"When? That was Kankuro who said that," he replied.

She threw a pillow at him, which he easily deflected with his sand.

"Hey, you two have to clean up any mess you make," I said.

"He started it!"

I smiled and whispered to Naruto, "Can you imagine having to play peacemaker when these two argue?" referring to our babies.

"Like Kakashi-sensei used to do between Sasuke and me? Oh, boy, at least they won't be able to use jutsus until they are older." He rubbed my stomach gently.

"Good, that way they can't destroy the house before they turn eight," I laughed.

"Do you want to see my handiwork?" he asked, helping me to my feet.

"Sure, why not?" Naruto showed me what the four of them had done. In addition to Kankuro's 'Konohafied' makeover, Shino's hair was in four ponytails like Temari and his fingernails were painted black. Temari and Matsuri had waxed Lee's eyebrows and buzzed his hair short. Naruto and Sai had tied Lee and Sakura together with their hitai-ites, and turned Sakura's hair black with ink. Chouji's hair was also turned black, pulled into a top knot like Shikamaru's, and black face paint covering his clan markings. Shikamaru's hair was down, his Chunin vest was gone, his hitai-ite was on his forehead instead of his arm, and Temari had covered his face with lipstick marks. Tenten had been put on Neji's lap, both were tied together with their hitai-ites, and the words 'Just Married' were painted on their foreheads. They were planning on getting married in three weeks, so it was funny. The best were Ino and Kiba. Ino was positioned so that her head was on Kiba's shoulder, and his arm was around his waist as she sat on his lap. There were lipstick marks on Kiba's face, and Ino wore the same color, which was smeared. Akamaru was still awake, and laying at their feet, looking very confused.

I nearly sent myself into labor by laughing so hard. They looked ridiculous, nothing like the respected ninja they were! "Please tell me you have pictures!"

Naruto, Sai, and Temari all held out their cameras. Just then, Tsunade, Kakashi, Rin, Kurenai, Anko, and Guy joined us on the roof.

"What happened here?" Tsunade bellowed.

"You gave Kankuro the wrong bottle, so he accidentally spiked the punch with a sleeping draught. Everyone who was dumb enough to not pay attention and still drink has paid the price for their carelessness," Gaara explained, smiling slightly.

Kakashi and Anko were doubled over laughing. Tsunade, Rin, and Kurenai were trying and failing to hide their laughter. Guy got a look at Lee with his makeover, and promptly lost it.

"Lee! My most useful student! What have they done to you?" he exclaimed, tears running down his face.

"I think it's an improvement," Kakashi managed to gasp out. Fortunately, Guy didn't hear him.

After a few minutes, Guy was still freaking out. Anko, with an evil smile on her face, got him a glass of the spiked punch. "Here, drink this, it will help you calm down."

Five minutes later, Guy was passed out. "I can't believe that he actually drank it. We told him the punch was spiked!" Naruto exclaimed.

"So he'll pay the price," Anko smirked, "Sai, hand me that paint by you."

We just stood back and watched as the former apprentice of Orochimaru got to work. She painted an eye patch and mustache on him, and then painted his green jumpsuit black. Once that was dry, she wrote in blue paint on Guy's back, 'Kakashi Hatake is the best Ninja in Konoha! I am nothing compared to his awesomeness!'

There was only one thing to do. Grab our cameras and take pictures of Anko's handiwork.

"Okay, we need to stop!" I exclaimed, "I can't stop laughing, and now my stomach is hurting."

Kakashi turned to Anko, "I owe you for that, Anko. Now maybe he'll stop challenging me to those pointless contests."

She smiled and tapped his hitai-ite, "I will collect, and don't you forget, Copy Ninja."

Rin was right next to him in a second, "Hands off, Anko."

Anko laughed, "Like I'd try to steal your boyfriend, Rin. I have something else in mind."

"Why do I get the feeling that I should be getting scared?" Kakashi muttered, causing all of us to laugh again.

* * *

A/N, take two: I wonder how everyone will react once they wake up. Hmmm, that will be interesting, and could result in a dead Naruto and Sai (like I would kill them). I hope you had fun reading this, because I sure had fun writing it! If people seem a little OOC, well, I'm apologizing now. I just could see Anko doing something like that. See ya next time! Let me know what you think!


	21. Chapter 21

Author's note: Let's see how everyone reacts to what was done to them. Thank you all who reviewed, I am glad you found it funny. Thanks also to those who voted in my poll, it is still up, so please vote and let me know who should receive an Uzu Katana. Please read and review! I enjoy your comments, just no flames allowed.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, I am not making any money off of this story, so please, don't sue me! I'm a college student, I don't have any money anyway!

* * *

I yawned as my eyes adjusted to the bright morning light and stretched. "Good morning, Hinata-hime," Naruto's voice sounded from next to me. I quickly turned onto my other side and was surprised to see that he had woken before me. _I guess pregnancy is making me more tired, as well as all that chakra I had to use yesterday for the Shadow Clone to take the trials. _Naruto had a grin on his face as he gave me a kiss, "We're both Jonin now."

"Good morning to you, Naruto-kun." I smiled, remembering the pranks we had pulled the night before and the final act when Guy-sensei had begun to sleep walk all over the village. I was amazed that he had managed to get down the stairs without hurting himself, but he had done it. We were both sure that by the time he had woken up, most of the village would have seen his new look, courtesy of Anko Mitarashi. "Has anyone woken up yet?" I asked.

"I haven't heard anything." We lived on the top floor of the apartment building, so we would most likely hear when our friends woke up. "It will be soon, I'm guessing. We hid and sealed all the cameras so they can't destroy them.

"I also sealed the apartment so they can't get in to get revenge on us. That's why Sai is sleeping on the couch, remember? He's scared that Sakura will kill him," I replied with a small giggle. I reached behind me to rub my back, it was sorer than usual this morning.

"Here, flip over and I'll take care of it," Naruto said, "I'll make breakfast in a few minutes."

"Naruto, what were you planning on making? I really don't want to have to explain a fire in the kitchen to our landlord," I said as I turned over, unable to keep the apprehension out of my voice. Naruto and kitchen appliances were a bad combination; I'll just leave it at that.

"I was just going to heat up some cinnamon rolls that I bought yesterday, Hinata! I promise I am not going to actually cook anything." He quickly got started working on my back, and soon I had forgotten about the impending breakfast incident.

About ten minutes later, we heard scuffling and shouting coming from above our heads. Our bedroom window was open, so we could easily hear everything.

"What is going on?" Shikamaru asked, sounding completely relaxed, "This is so troublesome."

"It appears that our comrades had some fun while we were passed out," Shino stated, "I hope this comes off."

"Naruto! I am going to kill you for this! I'll apologize to Hinata and your babies later! Sai, you are dead as well!" Sakura bellowed. I think the entire village must have heard her.

"Why is my face painted like Kankuro's?"

"Whose idea was this?" Tenten yelled.

"Its ink, I think Naruto and Sai were involved," Neji said, sounding slightly amused, "They got a little ahead of themselves. We're not married yet."

"What happened to my hair? Why do my eyes sting?" Lee asked, sounding perplexed.

"Oh, hell no! Please tell me I didn't make out with Dog Breath!" Ino screamed.

"Like I'd ever kiss you, you dumb blonde. I would have to be either crazy or drunk out of my mind to even want to make out with you!" Kiba shot back.

"Does anyone remember what happened last night?" Shikamaru loudly asked, trying to be heard over the noise, "For all we know, you two might have. Talk about a drag. This is such a mess."

Kiba and Ino began screaming at each other again. Suddenly Kankuro's voice sounded out, "And just what were you doing, Lazy? I know that's my sister's shade."

"Wahoo! Looks like Shikamaru got some action with Temari!" Kiba called out.

"What do you mean? Have you looked in a mirror recently, Kankuro?" Shikamaru replied, still sounding like he didn't have a care in the world.

"Oh, no! Temari, you are so dead! What did you do to me? Is this one of Naruto's old jumpsuits?"

"I don't think so. If it is, I am amazed you can wear it," Tenten said. "You look ridiculous, Kankuro. The only one of us who doesn't look strange is Lee. Short hair actually looks good on him."

"Kankuro does look the most ridiculous out of all of us," Neji agreed, "Let's see if Naruto and Hinata will let us in to wash this off."

"I doubt it."

"I am going to get Naruto and Sai for this if it's the last thing I do!" Sakura screeched.

"Hey, look at the street below. Isn't that Guy-sensei?" Chouji asked. "Looks like he also got pranked."

"Who did that to him? Not Naruto, Sai, and Temari, they would never prank a sensei like that. Not Kakashi-sensei either, it seems below him," Tenten mused.

"I think Anko is the culprit this time," Neji said, "Wait… Lee, don't read the back!"

"What do you mean…? Guy-sensei! Do you realize what you are telling the whole village? Don't kill your flames of youth like this!" We heard footsteps start to take off, and then Sakura yelling for Lee to stop so she could untie them.

Naruto had his face buried in my hair, trying to muffle his laughter. I was clutching the blankets to my face, hoping to accomplish the same thing.

Suddenly a new voice joined the hubbub on the roof. "I am so disappointed in the ten of you. You are all Jonin now, what excuses do you have for indulging in this sort of behavior?" We heard Tsunade scold them, "You have disturbed the peace of the morning with your racket."

"Tsunade-shisho, this isn't our fault! Naruto, Sai, and Temari are the ones to blame," Sakura defended.

"No, it is your fault. You shouldn't have drunk the punch Kankuro spiked with a sleeping draught. The only intelligent shinobi among you are Naruto, Hinata, Sai, Temari, Gaara, and Matsuri because they were observant and didn't drink it. You all got what you deserved." Tsunade began laughing.

"Hey, you're the only who gave me the bottle, old bat! You are just…" Kankuro was interrupted by Tsunade's dangerously angry voice.

"What did you just call me, Kankuro Sabaku?"

"Err, nothing, Hokage-sama."

"That's what I thought."

"So if I can't kill Naruto and Sai, can I hurt Kankuro instead? He is the one who spiked the punch," Sakura asked.

"Just don't let me catch you."

"Er, Sakura, please don't do anything that could jeopardize relationships between Konoha and Suna. Remember, I have diplomatic immunity!"

"I don't think the Kazakage or the Hokage will care about a couple of bruises. Get back here, baka!"

Naruto and I finally lost it as we heard a couple different people begin to chase Kankuro all over the roof top.

"Who do you think is chasing Kankuro?" Naruto managed to say once his laughter had calmed down.

"My guess is Sakura, Kiba, and Ino. Lee was too busy trying to wake Guy-sensei up, and the others weren't upset enough to do anything that drastic," I replied. "Shall we get dressed?"

"Sure, I wonder if Sai has woken up yet. I hope he was able to overhear what just happened."

We quickly dressed in basic civilian wear, Naruto in a black tee shirt and his dark orange pants, while I wore dark blue stretch pants and a short sleeved white maternity top. Once we left the bedroom, we found Sai wide awake, sitting on the couch with sketch book in hand.

"Good morning," he said, without looking up from his drawing. "Thank you for letting me stay here. I hate to imagine what Sakura would do to me if she found me today."

"No problem," Naruto replied, "Do you want to stay for breakfast? That might buy you enough time for everyone to go back home to undo what we did, then you can make your escape."

"Sure, thank you."

Naruto quickly heated up the cinnamon rolls in the microwave while I poured orange juice for the three of us. As we began eating, Naruto and Sai began discussing everyone's reactions to the pranks, while I tried to keep my mind off of the report Tsunade had received yesterday.

Naruto finally noticed my mind was somewhere else. "What's wrong, Hinata-hime? You seem a little distracted. Are you feeling well?"

"No, I feel fine. Tsunade received a rather disturbing message yesterday from Hidden Waterfall while you were taking the Trials with my clone."

"What did it say?" Sai asked, looking interested.

"It has something to do with Sasuke, doesn't it?" Naruto asked.

I nodded, "Yes, it did. That's why I didn't say anything yesterday. I didn't want to ruin the day for anyone. The message told us that Team Taka attacked a squad of ninja protecting a merchant caravan on its way to Hidden Waterfall."

"A Konoha squad?" Naruto quietly asked.

"Yes."

Sai spoke, "What happened to the squad, Hinata?"

"Three of the four were killed on site, and the fourth was fatally injured. He died after he was brought to Waterfall, but managed to relate what had happened before he died. Apparently Sasuke tried to recruit them, as he did Yamato's squad those months ago, and when they all refused, he killed the three and let the fourth live just long enough so people would know what happened."

Naruto swore and banged his hand on the table, causing me to jump. "He's challenging us, trying to force us to come after him, so he can defeat us and gloat about it."

"Naruto, it does seem like it," Sai observed, "He is trying to demoralize us by killing these people, and I doubt he will stop until he has achieved his goal of destroying Konoha."

"I think he is trying to provoke you and Sakura, Naruto-kun, along with the rest of us. He might be trying to lure you to him so he can take you out," I spoke up, trying to not let my fears show in my voice.

"Okay, that does it, promise or no promise, if that b****** makes another move against my home while I'm around, I'm going to kill him," Naruto snarled. "I won't let him get anywhere near my family or my home."

Sai gaped at him, "You are willing to break that promise you made to Sakura?" He looked like he was in shock.

"I only said I would bring him back, I never said anything about him being alive when I do it," Naruto replied. "Hinata, you and our twins are more important than some stupid, impulsive promise I made to Sakura all those years ago. I made a promise to you that I would protect you and stand by you when we got married. If bringing Sasuke back will put you and our family in danger, then I'm going to kill him first." His intense blue eyes were locked with mine the whole time he was speaking. I was in shock, I hadn't expected this reaction.

"Naruto-kun…" I whispered, taking his hand in mine. There were no words that could describe what I was feeling right then. He moved and embraced me firmly.

"I mean it, Hinata-hime," he whispered into my ear, "I will make sure he cannot harm you."

"I might have something which could help you," I whispered. "During my research on how to come up with a removal for the Caged Bird, I began to design a seal which could lock away someone's kekkei genkai at the genetic level, along with their chakra. I admit, I was just experimenting with it, but I might be able to get it to work in just a few months. Creating a seal is a lot easier than designing a removal. If it works, we might be able to use it on Sasuke, but that will cause the Sharingan to disappear forever."

"It will be worth the price, though some of the civilians may disagree," Sai stated, having overheard what I said. "That dojutsu seems to be nothing but trouble."

"I agree," Naruto replied. "Thank you, my hime." He pressed a kiss to my forehead. I gave a mental sigh of relief that he was calm again.

"Please, Naruto-kun, don't go looking for Sasuke," I pleaded, "He will come here to Konoha in time, and then you can face him. Please, I don't want to risk raising our babies without their father thanks to that teme."

He nodded, "I promise."

A few hours later, the three of us were startled by a pounding on our door. "It's Tsunade. I've got something for you!" She sounded excited.

I carefully opened up the door and she came flying in, something held in her hands. I gasped when I got a good look at it. It was an Uzu Katana.

Naruto and Sai both jumped to their feet when they saw what she was holding. I shut the door and stood next to my husband. "Tsunade-sama is that…" Sai trailed off.

She nodded, "Yes, it is." She then turned to Naruto, smiling broadly, "Congratulations, Naruto Namikaze. This is yours. You have proven yourself worthy to wield the katana of your mother's brother, Kichiro. Draw your blade, Naruto, so your katana will knows whose blood it must never taste again."

Almost in a trance, he took the weapon from her and cut his hand on the blade. The hilt and sheath turned from black to a dark bluish-silver. Naruto stared at the blade, and spoke, almost to himself, "I'm finally worthy because I put my priorities in order. My family is more important to me than anything else, I just needed to say it out loud."

I hugged him, knowing that he needed to know I was with him, all the way. "I could show you a few things with that," I said.

"Not until after the twins are born. I'll train with Kakashi until then, and after you're recovered, we'll learn together, I promise," he said, grinning at me. "Sasuke had better be careful; there is a new Uzu Katana master for him to worry about."

* * *

A/N, Take two: About time, Naruto got his katana! FYI, he always knew who was more important to him subconsciously, but sometime you need to hear yourself make a decision. I know that from experience. Let me know what you think, and please vote in my poll!


	22. Chapter 22

Author's note: Here is the next chapter, where another Uzu Katana master is revealed, the top result from my poll. It's still open for voting, so please keep telling me who you want for a katana. I put up my one shot about Rin, which has some stuff that will help this chapter make more sense if you want to read it. I don't think it's my best writing, but I like what I put in, and that's what counts. Please read and review!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Naruto, I'm just doing this for fun. Please don't sue me!

* * *

I was walking past the Konoha cemetery when I bumped into Rin. "Hello, Hinata. Did I forget your appointment again?" she asked, a little bashful.

"No, it's not until tomorrow," I replied with a laugh. "What were you doing at the cemetery, Rin-neechan?" I had begun calling her older sister, because she treated me like I was her younger sister.

"Greeting my father, brother, and your in-laws," she replied with a sad smile. "I've been trying to forgive myself for years for Kushina's death and my capture, which were both out of my control. I promised my sensei I would take care of her, and she died on my watch, but it wasn't my fault I couldn't find the blood I needed in time. The hospital was a mess that night, with the Kyuubi attacking. I had promised Kushina I would care for Naruto, but again, I was unable to due to circumstances beyond my control. I couldn't have done anything different to avoid getting captured, other than refusing the mission, which I would never do." She sighed, "It's taken awhile, but I think I am finally doing it. I no longer feel guilt when I remember those events, I just regret the fact they happened."

I gave her a hug. She looked like she needed one right then. "That's good to hear. It sounds like you've been doing a lot of soul searching lately."

"I have. It is much easier to do this back here in Konoha, than it was in Iwa. I feel much better, like a load I never knew I was carrying has been taken off." She smiled, "How are you doing?"

"Feeling well, I'm just getting bigger and gaining weight. I try to complain to my husband that I'm fat, and he just says, 'You're not fat, you're pregnant, and you are the most beautiful pregnant kunoichi in Konoha.' I think he's just trying to not make me upset more by my figure." I sighed, my hands tracing my swollen belly. I was now five months pregnant, and it was getting difficult to see my own feet. "I'm on my way to the Hokage's tower. I have been permanently assigned there for the duration of my pregnancy, and possibly longer."

"I'll join you. What's Naruto doing?"

"He's training with Kakashi, learning how to use his uncle's katana." We reached the Hokage's tower and were met by Tsunade outside of her office.

"Oh, good, you're here, Hinata, and you brought Rin as well. Rin, I am glad to see you, because I have something that belongs to you." We followed her inside, Rin giving me a puzzled look. I shrugged; I had no clue what Tsunade meant.

"This is yours, Rin Norita," the Hokage smiled as she pulled a black Uzu Katana out of a closet and gave it to the brown haired medic. Rin took it in speechless astonishment, her eyes never leaving the blade. "Draw your blade, so it may know whose blood it must never taste again."

Rin did so, and the katana turned a dark gray with a violet sheen. She smiled, "It's because I finally chose to forgive myself." She studied the blade, and then gasped in shock. "I've seen this one before! This katana's former wielder was Kushina's sister, Kasumi."

"I think it knew you also were Kushina's sister, in spirit, but not by blood," Tsunade gently squeezed the medic's shoulder.

A messenger ran in, interrupting the tender moment. Tsunade looked like she was about to clobber him, but his words stopped all of us in our tracks. "Hokage-sama! We need you at the hospital!"

"What is it?" she demanded.

"Team Ebisu, they've been attacked, less than a day's journey away from the village. Ebisu has serious injuries and is suffering from chakra exhaustion, but they are not life threatening. Konohamaru is in critical condition and could go either way."

I waited, but when he didn't say more, I blurted out, "What about Moegi and Udon?"

"Udon is dead, and Moegi's injuries are fatal. She has a subarachnoid hemorrhage we cannot stop, in addition to other injuries," he said.

"Rin, Hinata, come with me. I'll need all the help I can get." We took off to the hospital. Tsunade immediately took charge of Konohamaru's care, while Rin got to work on Ebisu. I went in to Moegi's room. Healers were working on her, but I could tell by her wounds and the way she was acting, that she had no chance for recovery.

Amazingly, she was still conscious. I knew it was a jutsu that was keeping her conscious, but not fully aware of her situation. "Hi, Hinata. Did you get my gift for the babies?"

"Yes," I said, remembering the two hats and pairs of booties she had given me not long after my Jonin Trials. "You did a very good job on the hats and booties. Thank you." I began crying.

"Where's my mom?" she asked, sounding scared.

"The medics are bringing her here," I gently stroked her blood-spattered hair, trying not to look at the head injury. "Who did this to you?"

"Sasuke. He knew Konohamaru is close to the boss," she whispered, "He wants to fight Naruto, and we told him that Boss is too busy with his family to want to fight a traitor like him. I'm sorry for telling him about the babies."

"It's okay," I said, "Sasuke would have found out about them eventually. You were very brave to face him, Moegi."

She gave me a small smile, "I cut three fingers off of his medic and her hair before the big guy hit me in the head. She's no kunoichi."

"You are, one of the best," I replied. Just then, her parents came in. "Your family is here."

"Okay." I gave her a kiss on her forehead, and hugged her parents. As I opened the door to leave, she said, "Hinata, help Naruto stop that Sasuke-teme. Make him pay for killing Udon."

"I will, and that's a promise, Moegi. I never break my promises." I left, and barely made it to a chair outside the room before I fell apart.

My sobbing was interrupted a few minutes later. "Hinata? What's wrong?"

"Naruto!" I stayed in my chair, lacking the energy to stand. "Team Taka has attacked another Konoha team. It was Konohamaru's!"

His face went dead white as he collapsed against the wall next to my chair. "What happened? Are they all right?"

"Udon is dead, Moegi is dying, Konohamaru is in critical condition, and Ebisu's injuries are serious. I just talked with Moegi. He's trying to provoke you into fighting him, Naruto-kun. He attacked them with the intent of making you mad enough to go after him." I left my chair and took him into my arms. It was slightly awkward with my pregnant belly, but I did it. He clung to me like I was his lifeline.

"Why?" Naruto whispered, "Why can't he just leave the past be? Or, at least, leave the innocent ones out of this? Why does he have to get revenge on Konoha? The ones responsible for the Uchiha massacre are dead. Why do Konohamaru and his teammates have to pay for something they didn't have a part of?"

"I don't know," I replied, "but Sasuke has thought of himself as an avenger for so long, he can't do anything else, that is what I believe. I don't know why Konohamaru must suffer the loss of his teammates and best friends, but I know that he can get through it with his mother and you to help him." I sighed. "I'll need to tell Hanabi, she was good friends with all three of them."

"Let's first find out how Konohamaru is doing," He tried to stand, but I kept him down.

"Moegi's inside this room. The medics cast a jutsu to help her stay conscious long enough so her parents can talk to her one last time. We should be here for when they leave."

A few minutes later, her parents exited the room, both in tears. "She's gone," her father said, looking at us. "Thank you for seeing her, Hinata-san. Naruto?"

Naruto looked scared, like he thought the man would blame him for his daughter's death. "Yes, sir?"

"When you face Sasuke and Team Taka again, make them pay for every year they stole of my daughter's life," the man said.

"I will, of that you can be sure."

"Thank you." With that, they left.

"I can't see her right now," Naruto said, looking at the door into Moegi's room. "I need to see how Konohamaru is doing."

"Tsunade is taking care of him," I said, "He's in one of the trauma rooms, this way." We made our way to the room where Tsunade was treating Konohamaru, and sat down, across from his mother.

We waited in silence, and about twenty minutes later, Tsunade came out of the room. "Akemi," she said, turning to Konohamaru's mother, "Your son will make it. He is in a medically induced coma right now to help his recovery, but he will survive."

"Will he still be able to be a ninja?"

"If I have anything to say about it, yes, he will. It will take time for him to recover and recuperate both physically and emotionally, but I think he can do it. He's a tough kid." She turned to us, "Naruto, Hinata, I need you two to gather every member of the Konoha Twelve and meet me in my office this afternoon. Also bring Temari and your senseis. We need to have a discussion about what to do."

"Understood, Hokage-sama," we said.

Naruto turned to Akemi, "I'm sorry about what happened to him. Sasuke attacked him because of our friendship."

"Its okay, Naruto. Sasuke would have attacked him anyway just because he is a loyal Konoha shinobi and grandson of the Sandaime," she replied, taking his hand. "I knew that there was a chance that he could face an early death like his father and uncle when he chose the life of a ninja. Don't blame yourself; the blame rightly belongs to Sasuke. He is the only one at fault for what happened today."

"She's right," I whispered, "Sasuke didn't only attack them because of what they meant to you, but it was his choice, not yours."

"Listen to me, Naruto," Akemi ordered, "I do not blame you for what happened to Konohamaru and his team. I am grateful for your friendship to my son. You helped him become a better person and ninja." She gave him a hug. "Now, go, you received some orders from the Hokage."

We quickly gathered everyone and met at Tsunade's office. Sakura took one look at our faces and asked, "What has happened, you two?"

"Sasuke attacked Konohamaru's team and killed Moegi and Udon," I said when it was apparent that Naruto was unable to say anything. "He did it to try to provoke Naruto into coming after him."

"I'm not going to do what that teme wants," Naruto growled, "If I leave, Hinata and our babies are unprotected, so he could easily get to them. If he wants to fight, he had better come here."

Everyone stared at us in shock. Sakura seemed unable to speak. Tsunade entered the office and spoke, "I called you here to discuss what should be done concerning Sasuke Uchiha."

* * *

A/N, Take Two: I can't believe I just did that. I KILLED MOEGI AND UDON! (Goes and Hides in fear of mob) I wonder what the discussion will be about, and who will lose their tempers first. Please review, just don't flame me. I like fire, just not that kind. Don't worry, Konohamaru isn't in danger of being killed off, but he will need some time to recover.


	23. Chapter 23

Author's note: Next chapter, and here is something I always wanted to see, Neji lose his temper. I think the only thing scarier would be the Kyuubi. Thanks so much everyone who read ad reviewed! Yeah. Please tell me what you think, just don't flame me. My computer reacts badly to flames.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, just the plot, and Yume belongs to my friend Ryusora, who graciously allowed me to use her.

* * *

"What do you mean, Hokage-sama?" Shino asked, "Sasuke is classified as a missing nin, so we know what must be done to him."

"Shino, Sasuke is in a different category all together. Since he is the last Sharingan user left alive, there are people in the village who want him brought back alive so he can bring back the Uchiha clan. I don't agree with them, the Sharingan and Sasuke aren't worth the price."

I sat down in shock. Even after all he had done, there were still people in the village who would welcome Sasuke back. "What is wrong with them?" I asked, almost to myself.

"I can trust all of you here concerning Sasuke. I know he can't sway you to his side and get you to betray the village. You maybe the only ones in the village with a chance at stopping him," Tsunade stated, her brown eyes meeting all of our gazes in turn.

We were interrupted right them by Rin entering the office, being followed by Yume. "Ebisu has regained consciousness," she reported. "Apparently he was scouting ahead while the Genin set up the camp. He returned toward the end of the fight, and managed to save Konohamaru. He then made two Shadow Clones to help bring the children back to Konoha."

"I was there, and Rin-san asked me to take notes on what he said," Yume added, handing a scroll to Tsunade. "Here is his report, Hokage-sama."

"Thank you," she thanked the petite brunette, who nodded and looked as though she was going to leave, but Tsunade stopped her. "Please stay, Yume, you apparently know what is happening, and I think we might need someone with a cool head in a few moments." The girl nodded again, and stood next to Sai.

"What do you want us to do with Sasuke?" Shikamaru asked.

"When you face him again, and I know you will, since he is apparently aiming for Naruto, I want the eleven of you, which will be twelve once Hinata gives birth, to do what ever it takes to stop him."

"By whatever means necessary?" Sai asked.

"I would prefer it if you kill him," she replied, "It would make things a lot easier, and it is what should be done to him. He has broken enough laws to warrant the death penalty."

Sakura spoke up, in a timid voice, "Do we have to kill Sasuke, Tsunade-shisho? Can't we do something different?"

The room got so quiet you could hear a pin drop. _She knows that Sasuke is responsible for the deaths of six Konoha shinobi that we know of, and she still wants to spare his life? _

The first one to break the silence was Neji. I have never seen my cousin so close to completely losing his temper. "After all he has done, you still have feelings for him, Sakura? You still want him to live? We have currently lost six shinobi because of him, and five of us in this room were severely injured and almost died to bring him back in the first place! Do you still believe that he will willingly return to the village he abandoned almost five years ago and has now sworn to destroy?" His pale gaze locked with hers.

"No, I just wanted to see if there was another way," she squeaked out.

"What if that other way involved one of us dying? Would it be worth it then? What does your fiancée think of you putting Sasuke's life above his?"

"I don't! Lee-kun is much more important to me than Sasuke!" she protested.

"Then why do you hesitate when it comes to the subject of killing Sasuke?" Neji replied. "I know he was once your teammate, he used to be one of us, I know that, Sakura. Sasuke willingly broke those bonds; he is no longer your teammate and one of us. Do you understand that?"

"Remember what Kakashi-sensei told us, 'Those who break the rules are scum, but those who abandon their friends and comrades are lower than scum,'" Naruto spoke up, "I think we should add one more line, 'Those who betray their friends and comrades should have never been born.' Sakura, he was my teammate as well, and he willingly tried to kill me for the sake of getting more power. I will kill him if it will keep us safe. I now have a family to worry about, and they are much more important to me than a friend who betrayed us all." Naruto wrapped his arm around my shoulders to prove his point.

"If we need to kill Sasuke, Sakura, can we depend on you to help us?" Neji demanded.

After a pregnant pause, she lifted her head and nodded decisively, "I may feel uncomfortable about it, but I will help you kill him if there is no other option." She took Lee's hand in hers, "I will stand by your side, I promise."

"Good, anyone else have any objections?" Tsunade asked.

"I have one," Yume said, "Why does it have to be only ninja to face off against Sasuke? After what he did to those kids, I want a piece of him." She looked furious.

"I will get a piece of him for you," Sai replied, "Sasuke is too dangerous for you to face." That seemed to pacify the storekeeper.

"What will it take?" Tenten asked, "If any of us get close to Sasuke, he will attack."

"Suna maybe in danger as well," Temari spoke up, "I will need to inform the Kazekage to be on guard against Team Taka."

"Good idea, Temari," Tsunade replied. "In answer to Tenten's question, I will send you all out on missions that require at least two of you. It is the only thing I can think of. Hinata will be safe here, and I may have Sakura and Ino moved to positions at the hospital until this is sorted out."

"I may have something, Tsunade-sama," I spoke up, "Remember how I told you last month, that during my studies of Fuuinjutsu, I have begun to come up with a seal that will seal away a person's kekkei genkai at the genetic level. I did it to help me unravel a removal for the Caged Bird, and as a way to punish criminals who have kekkei genkai."

Everyone stared at me in shock. "It may be an option if I can get it to work, but it will cost us any chance of having the Sharingan restored."

"But it may be an ultimate punishment for Sasuke, losing what makes him important," Shikamaru mused. "If Hinata can get this seal usable, we would have another advantage."

"Keep working on it, Hinata. In the meantime, the rest of you, including Kakashi, Rin, Kurenai, and Guy, make sure you are at the top of your game until we take care of that traitorous last Uchiha. Rin, you know how next month I am sending you to Wave country to help them get their new hospital up and running?"

The medic nodded, "Are you going to cancel the mission because of the threat of Team Taka?"

"No, I am assigning you an escort. Kakashi, you will be escorting her and teaching her how to use her new weapon at the same time." Tsunade paused, "I believe that is everything, so unless anyone else has something to say, you are all dismissed."

As we left the office, I turned to Naruto, "We need to go to the Hyuga compound, I need to tell Hanabi what happened to her friends."

"Hinata," Tenten said, "I thought you weren't supposed to go there, since you are disowned and shunned by every member of the clan other than Neji and Hanabi."

"I'll just say it is official business from the Hokage, which it is." I replied, "Hanabi should hear this from me."

"From both of us, they were my friends as well," Naruto added.

"Come with us, and if they won't let you in, I'll help Hanabi come out to meet you," Neji said, leading the way, his new wife Tenten at his side.

We made our way to the compound, and somehow Neji managed to get the guards to let us inside. I quickly found my sister in the dojo, training with Hiashi.

"Hiashi-sama, Hanabi-chan," I said, "I am here on orders from the Hokage. I bring some news about your friends, Konohamaru, Moegi, and Udon."

"What happened to them?" she asked.

"They were attacked by Sasuke Uchiha and Team Taka," I replied, "Konohamaru is in critical condition and I regret to inform you that Moegi and Udon…didn't survive." I could barely get the words out, it made them seem more real and more heartbreaking to say it to my sister.

Hanabi was shocked. "Hinata, what about Konohamaru?" Hiashi asked, to my surprise. He was acknowledging me for the first time since I was disinherited.

"He is expected to survive and make a full recovery," I replied, "He is in a medically induced coma to help his recovery, but Tsunade-sama is overseeing his treatment personally."

Hiashi turned to Naruto, "Sasuke is your former teammate, what are you planning on doing about this?"

"I want more than anything to go after him, but I will not leave Hinata-hime alone when she can't defend herself," Naruto replied, standing tall and meeting Hiashi's eyes. "When I encounter Sasuke again, I will make sure he is brought to justice."

I was shocked to see a gleam of approval in Hiashi's eyes, "That is good to know that my daughter and grandchildren are in good hands."

I nearly passed out from shock. He was acknowledging me as his daughter and claiming our babies as his grandchildren? What was happening here? Just then, a clan elder entered the dojo. "Why are they here, Hiashi-sama? They are not allowed to be within these walls."

"They were just delivering a message from the Hokage, so they were allowed just this one time," Hiashi replied. "Thank you for informing us, I will take Hanabi to the hospital once we are finished so she may visit her friend."

"Thank you for receiving us, Hiashi-sama," I replied, bowing my head slightly as we left. Once we were outside the clan compound and on our way home, I spoke up, "Did he just acknowledge me and our babies?"

"He did," Naruto replied, "I wonder why? Maybe he found his heart."

"Maybe," I replied, "I don't know, but he seems like he is defying the clan elders. Maybe thing are starting to change between the two of us."

"It's about time," Naruto muttered, "I don't feel like cooking tonight, Hinata. You mind if we get some ramen instead? I just…" he paused, "I just want some time to relax and remember Moegi and Udon. I'm not feeling too much of anything right now. I think I'm still in shock over their deaths."

"You need to grieve," I added, "If ramen will help you get over the shock, then I say, let's go hit Ichiraku's. Tomorrow, we can get some flowers and give them to Konohamaru, and Udon and Moegi's parents. Tonight, I know I need to cry."

He nodded and we took off to get dinner.

* * *

A/N, take two: This last part was inspired by how I feel when I have lost someone who means a lot to me. I just need some time to think and remember them, and then I am fine and can say goodbye. I wonder why Hiashi's done a 180? maybe the ghost of his dead wife came to him in a dream and threatened him. Okay, no more reading a Christmas Carol by Dickens when I am trying to write. I really wasn't serious about that, but Hiashi is softening a bit. Thanks again for reading!


	24. Chapter 24

Author's note: Here is my next chaoter! Please, read, review and enjoy! Just no flames!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Unfortunately.

* * *

I finished up with the soup and pulled the bread out of the oven. "Wow, Hinata, that smells good," Tenten commented. "I have just one question for you. You're eight months pregnant with twins. Why the heck are you still cooking?"

I laughed, "Because I like to and all Naruto can cook without setting the kitchen on fire is instant ramen. It is something I still can do; I just have to be careful lifting heavy things."

Tenten shuddered, "I think it would drive me crazy, all the restrictions from being pregnant. Don't get me wrong, I want kids, but I'm not looking forward to the whole pregnancy part, morning sickness, having to stop training and missions, losing the ability to bend over."

"You never know. I got a letter from Matsuri a few days ago. She's due six months after me. Apparently Gaara is excited about the baby. He keeps putting his hand on her stomach so he can feel the baby's first kick, just never when anyone else is around."

"Wow, Gaara is going soft, I never would have believed it." Neji and Tenten had married three months ago and had been coming over for dinner once every two weeks since. I enjoyed these meals, and was glad that the council had stopped giving Neji grief over visiting me. I suspected my father may have had something to do with it, but I wasn't sure.

Naruto finished setting the table. "Do you need me for anything else, Hinata-hime?"

"No, dinner will be ready in just a few minutes," I gave him a quick kiss. "Where's Neji?"

"He found your seal removal scroll and is studying it," he replied, "He finds it fascinating, though he admits he knows next to nothing about Fuuinjutsu."

"I'm nowhere near done with it. I have completed the Kekkei Genkai and Chakra Seal and designed a removal for it. It is much easier to do to a seal I designed myself than one someone else made."

"That's the seal with Sasuke's name on it?" Tenten questioned, "Why did you design a removal?"

"The same reason I created the seal, to practice. This removal will only unlock someone's chakra; their kekkei genkai is still sealed."

"Hmmm, good idea, incase you use it on someone who reforms. That way they can get their chakra back."

"It's a good thing she finished it," Naruto said, "It gives us a option for something other than killing him, which might be even more painful."

Neji walked in, "Yes, losing what makes him special and powerful would definitely be the ultimate punishment. You have no problems with having to kill a former teammate, Naruto?"

"Part of me still hopes that he will turn back, even though I know that will most likely happen when hell freezes over. Sasuke had shown himself to be devoid of anything resembling loyalty or friendship. He has tried to kill me several times, and that I could forgive. But what he did to Konohamaru, Moegi, and Udon, that I will not. If he doesn't give us a chance to seal him, I'll kill him myself. You know all this, Neji, why do you ask?"

"I just want to be sure. We found out he now has two former Konoha shinobi, one Kumo, two Kiri including Suigetsu, and four Iwas in Team Taka as well. It will be hard when we face him."

"But not impossible." Naruto quickly took the soup pot out of my hands and placed it on the table.

Tenten raised an eyebrow, "Hinata, you have him trained well. Please let me in on your secret."

Neji started and stared at her, clearly shocked. I laughed, "It happened when I got pregnant. He doesn't want me to lift anything heavier than my katana."

"And not even that right now," Naruto replied, giving me a peck on the cheek. "It's getting too close to your due date. Let's eat!"

Just then a knock sounded on the door. Naruto opened it, to find an ANBU standing there. "Naruto, Neji, the Hokage requests your presence, immediately."

"Baachan, you have the worst possible timing," Naruto grumbled, casting a longing look at the pot which contained my beef noodle soup.

"We'll save some for you," I assured him, "Don't keep her waiting."

Naruto and Neji both left and Tenten turned toward me. "What's going on?"

"No idea," I replied, "She wouldn't be sending Naruto on an extended mission away from the village. I'm too close to delivery."

We sat down and began to eat, and then heard a shout from the Hokage's tower. "That sounded like Naruto," I said, "I hope she just didn't break her promise."

"Maybe she told them something more about Sasuke and Team Taka. I don't know."

"Are we that short on shinobi?" I asked.

"Maybe it's a mission which needs Jonin," Tenten replied, "Remember, Kakashi and Rin aren't back yet from Wave. She may need Naruto and Neji to take up the slack."

"I hope not," I whispered, almost to myself, "I've been experiencing false labor consistently now for almost two weeks now. I don't know if I'll last the final three weeks to my due date. Twins tend to come early, from what I've been told."

Tenten got out of her chair and gave me a comforting hug. "If she does give them an extended mission, I'll crash her so you won't be alone. I will also go yell at Tsunade for you."

"Thanks Tenten," I whispered, beginning to tear up. I quickly brushed them away when I heard the apartment door open. Naruto and Neji both stormed in, identical annoyed expressions on their faces.

"She's sending you two out of the village on a mission, isn't she?" Tenten said in a matter-of-fact tone.

Neji nodded, "It's an A-rank mission which should take about seven to nine days. Team Taka has supposedly been sighted not far from here."

"You two don't have many skills when it comes to espionage," I said, one hand clutching at my well-rounded stomach.

"That's true, but we both know Sasuke and are the only ones available of the Konoha Twelve to go are the two of us. Tsunade-baachan needs Tenten here to teach basic kenjutsu, and you can't go on missions. Sakura and Lee got married last week and aren't back from their honeymoon yet, and everyone else is on missions. So, Neji and I were assigned. We leave tomorrow morning."

"Want me to go yell at Tsunade?" Tenten asked her annoyance obvious in her face.

"If I go into labor before you two come home, I'll gladly come with you, Tenten," I muttered, getting out of my chair and embracing my husband.

"I'll be home before they arrive, I promise," Naruto whispered, holding me as close as my abdomen would allow. If you do go into labor, Baachan said she would send a messenger hawk with immediate recall orders and I'll get back here as quick as I can."

We finished up the meal in silence, all of us slightly annoyed at the Hokage, but all understanding her reasoning. There were only a few people she could fully trust concerning Sasuke, and we were all on that very short list. She knew he couldn't turn us against Konoha and that we also had the power to stand against him.

As Neji and Tenten bade us farewell for the night, Tenten promising to return the next morning with her stuff so I wouldn't be alone, someone came in the open door, knocking my cousin over in the process.

"Hi, Boss. I just got done with physical therapy for the day and smelled Hinata's cooking." Konohamaru outwardly looked very well, only a scar on the left side on his jaw and a few bandages were the only evidence of the fight with Team Taka. Inside, though, he was very different. He was completely focused on learning and perfecting his ninja skills, and had completely stopped doing his perverted jutsus. He was taking the loss of his team as well as could be expected, but the mischievous part of him was gone. "My mom also gave me a present for the babies." He held up a wrapped package.

"Thank you, Konohamaru, and tell your mom 'thank you.'"

His eyes nearly popped out of his head, "Whoa, Hinata, you are huge!"

Naruto grit his teeth at that remark, "She's pregnant, not huge, and she is still beautiful. Konohamaru, I'm leaving on a mission tomorrow, to gather more information about Team Taka."

"Don't do anything stupid, Boss," Konohamaru said, "but I wouldn't mind hearing how you take them down when it does happen." He cast a glance at his bandaged leg and arm. "Tsunade-sama says that with a little rest and physical therapy, I'll be good as new in about four months time."

Naruto laughed, "That's great to hear. Just be careful with your training, you don't want to over exert yourself. Do you want to help me clean up and take care of the dishes? I don't like Hinata standing on her feet for so long."

The thirteen year old paled at the mention of chores. "Er, sorry, boss, my mom needs me to get home. I just wanted to drop the present off and say hi! See ya later!"

Naruto laughed as he closed the door. "I knew that would get him to leave, his mom does need him right now. Hinata, sit down and put your feet up. I am doing the dishes on my own tonight."


	25. Chapter 25

Author's note: I am so excited to finally write this chapter, and I keep worrying if I got everything right. I just based most of it off of what my mom and sister-in-law had told me. I do make a few references to my one shot Rin Norita's story, in case anyone gets confused. Please enjoy, there is fluff in here, and I think its cute. I just hope you think its the same. Please read and review, just don't flame me, my computer is allergic to them!

Disclaimer: Time to meet another future shinobi of Konoha, Obito Hatake! Your turn!

Obito: Alerya doesn't own Naruto, Just the plot of this fic and her OC's. Hey, Alerya, when are you going to tell our story?

Alerya: (grins) When I get done with this one, if all of you behave, maybe.

(Yes, I admit, I am currently writing a sequel to this story. I love writing and am having a lot of fun in the Naruto world, give me a break!)

* * *

"Hinata, are you feeling okay?" Tenten asked, poking her head into the bedroom. "You are normally up and getting ready to go to the Hokage's Tower by now."

I was lying on my side in bed, one hand on my stomach and the other holding my covers over my head. It had been five days since Naruto and Neji had left, and this morning I had woken up, feeling just plain miserable. I was achy, my feet were very swollen, and I had no energy, what so ever.

"Hinata?" Tenten repeated, "Are you awake?"

I reluctantly uncovered my head, "Sorry, Tenten, I'm exhausted. I think all of my energy is going to the babies. I don't want to get out of bed."

She gently touched my forehead. "No fever, so I don't think you're sick. My guess is you just need to rest. Do you want me to call Rin and ask her to come check you out?"

"No, I'll be fine, and you don't want to disturb her in the mornings right now. She told me yesterday that she has been suffering from really bad morning sickness."

Tenten's eyes nearly popped out of her head. "I know Kakashi and Rin eloped while they were in Wave, but she's already pregnant?" She shook her head in amazement. "It appears that they are making up for lost time."

"She told me when she got back three days ago," I replied, yawning.

"Maybe your body is just getting ready to give birth. Aren't you excited to see little Minato and Sayuri?"

"So you also believe it will be a set of boy-girl twins?" I asked. "It could also be two boys or two girls. The second name we have picked for a boy is Haku, and the other girl's name is Tsunade."

"Where did you get the name Haku from? I thought Naruto might want to name a boy after Jiraiya-sama."

"Haku was a shinobi Naruto met and fought against during his first C-rank mission, to the Land of Wave. He is the one who taught Naruto about the importance of fighting for his precious people. Haku was killed on that mission, but he still made a huge impression on Naruto. He wants to honor him, and I agree."

Tenten smiled, "I admit, I like that name better. Well, you'll find out soon enough. I've made some breakfast, and I'll bring it to you before I have to go to the Academy to teach the little ankle biters."

I interrupted with a small laugh, "Come on, Tenten, admit you enjoy it, and also teaching how tough kunoichi can be."

"Okay, I do like it a lot more than I had expected to when Iruka-sensei first asked me to teach kenjutsu." She smiled at the confession, "I'll be back around noon. I'll tell Tsunade-sama you aren't coming in."

"I'll just sleep, and if I need anything, I could just send a Shadow clone to get you," I replied, "Thanks, Tenten."

She stayed to make sure I had eaten, and I fell asleep once she had left. At about four in the afternoon, I finally woke up. Needing to use the bathroom, I managed to get out of bed and waddled my way to the bathroom.

Once I was finished, I was about to get back into bed when a pain abruptly tightened my abdomen and back. It was similar to my false labor, but a whole lot more painful. I gasped in pain, but stayed standing.

Tenten rushed in, looking alarmed. "Hinata, what's wrong?"

I had managed to stand straight once the pain had ended, and now looked at my friend with wide, frightened eyes. "I think I just had a contraction, but I'm not sure. Let's give it some time and see what happens."

Tenten helped me out into the living room where I sat down on the couch and we waited. After about forty minutes, I was pretty sure it was time. The contractions were a little irregular, but normally happening about six minutes apart.

"Tenten, I think I need to get to the hospital," I spoke up, breaking the silence, and trying to keep the nervousness out of my voice. I may be a Jonin and a confident, strong kunoichi; but sometimes I felt like the timid girl I had been during my childhood, and this was one of those times.

"I'll inform Tsunade, and then we'll get you to the hospital," Tenten said, "I'm sorry, I don't think I can get you there on my own. I'll be back in a few minutes! Just relax and breathe!" She dashed out the door.

"Maybe I should have taught her the Shadow Clone Jutsu," I muttered, "That would be useful right now."

Ten minutes and one contraction later, Tenten and Tsunade rushed back in. Tsunade quickly excused their delay, "I just sent a Hawk with recall orders to Naruto and Neji. They should start back home within the next two hours if all goes well." She performed a quick diagnostic. "You are in labor, Hinata. Let's get you to the hospital."

Once I was fully situated in a private room in the maternity ward, Tsunade started an IV. "This will decrease your pain, and also has the benefit of slowing down your labor a little bit, though you are moving slow. It will help you and hopefully buy enough time for Naruto to get here. It might also make you a little drowsy."

I yawned, already feeling sleepy. "Not maybe, it will make me drowsy." I ended up drifting off just as Rin showed up.

I was brought back to consciousness by a gentle kiss. "I'm back, Hinata-hime."

"Naruto-kun," I whispered, reaching a hand to touch his face, "You're back, just in time."

He gave me his familiar grin, "Just like I promised. I'm here for you." He gave my hand a squeeze as he said that.

Thank heaven for the invention of pain killers, or I might have broken my husband's hand. Naruto had arrived at the hospital at two in the morning, and it was almost seven in the morning before I was fully dilated and ready to start pushing.

"Does this normally take so long?" Tenten asked Rin.

The medic gave a tired smile, "It is different for every woman. Kushina only took five hours with Naruto, Hitomi was in labor for twenty hours with Hinata, and Hinata is currently over fifteen hours, but the pain killer Tsunade gave her didn't help matters either." Rin turned her focus back to me, "Okay, push again, Hinata!"

"What do you think I am doing, Rin?" I snapped at her. She just smiled at me while Tsunade laughed at my outburst.

"Keep pushing, we can see the head of the first baby," Tsunade called out.

I bore down, and at 7:45 am on November 18, our son was born, and he looked just like his father, blonde hair and everything, just no whisker marks. Tsunade held up the screaming baby boy while Rin got into position to catch the other twin. "Hello, Minato," I managed to say before Rin told me to push again. At 8:00 am, his sister made her appearance. She looked very much like me, but had blonde hair just like her father and brother.

"Nice to see you to, Sayuri-chan," Naruto said as Rin showed us the wailing baby girl.

Tsunade took the twins to clean and examine them, and invited Naruto to come watch while Rin cleaned me up. Naruto was obviously torn between wanting to stay with me and staying with our babies, but I nodded and told him to go. Tenten left to go wake Neji up, who had fallen asleep on a couch in the waiting room. He had been exhausted from matching Naruto's pace on the way back, and had crashed almost the moment he had sat down, according to Naruto and Tenten.

Once the twins were settled in the nursery and Neji had seen them, Tsunade and Naruto came back, followed by Neji and Tenten. Tsunade was holding two official pieces of paper, and handed them to Rin.

"You delivered their parents, so I find it fitting that you do this," she replied with a wink.

Rin gave a weak smile, a little green in the face (she had left a few minutes ago to throw up and had just got back). She began to fill out the birth certificates, "The names are officially Minato and Sayuri Namikaze?"

We both nodded, and then heard Neji exclaim, "Namikaze!?"

"Sorry, forgot that Naruto still hasn't told anyone yet," Rin apologized, looking embarrassed. Tsunade began to laugh at the look on Neji and Tenten's faces.

"Uzumaki is my mother's name, Kushina Uzumaki," Naruto explained, "My father is Minato Namikaze, the Yondaime Hokage. I grew up using my mother's name to help protect me from my father's enemies. Tsunade-baachan told me the truth when I was sixteen. Hinata was there when she told me, and she was the only person who knew until we informed Hiashi-sama and Kakashi-sensei after we got eloped."

"And I accidentally revealed it in front of Sakura and Sai when they rescued me," Rin replied, "Just like I did today." She shrugged apologetically.

Neji and Tenten were shocked speechless and I began to laugh. "Now the Namikaze clan is being rebuilt and perhaps they also will have the Byakugan."

"They both opened their eyes when Baachan bathed them," Naruto told me, "They both have your eyes, Hime, but with a bluish tint."  
"They have the Byakugan," Neji confirmed, managing to find his voice. "I saw their eyes as well. Who would have believed that the Hyuga heiress eloped with the last of the Namikaze?"

"Believe it," Naruto replied, stifling a laugh.

Tenten shook her head in astonishment, "No wonder Hiashi had no choice but to allow your marriage once he found out. The Hyuga and the Namikaze were allies before Konoha was founded. Now the two clans are united."

"Just like Kushina and Hitomi hoped would happen once they found out Kushina was having a boy and Hitomi was having a girl," Rin told us, "They had the wedding planned within a week."

We all laughed at that, either from the silliness of it or we were all feeling the lack of sleep. I gave a huge yawn, which everyone echoed, "I think we all need to get some sleep, or some more in mine and Neji's cases. I picked a wonderful time to go into labor."

"We will first inform Hiashi-jisan and Hanabi that Minato and Sayuri are here," Neji said, "And then I am going to bed."

"I can put off my paperwork for a day. It is a special occasion, after all, it's not everyday I become a grandmother," Tsunade replied. "I'll see you later today, Hinata, to make sure everything is all right."

Rin had already left, probably to throw up again. I felt so bad for her, remembering all to well what my own morning sickness had been like. Rin had insisted on being there when I gave birth, regardless to how she felt. She said it was her job as Naruto's adopted older sister (and mine as well) and she was the medic who had treated me for most of my pregnancy.

Once they left, I noticed a wrapped package on one of the tables. I pointed it out to Naruto and he brought it over to me. "It's from Rin," He said, "And she wrote on it, 'I forgot I had taken these that night, with the chaos of everything that had happened. I am grateful I was able to find them. These are my gift to you.'"

Intrigued, we opened the package to find five framed pictures, four were of Minato and Kushina holding a newborn Naruto and the last one was of Rin holding Naruto. That one had written on the back, 'I believe Jiraiya-sama took this when I wasn't looking. I had taken you from the Sandaime when I informed him that Kushina had died, and refused to let you go.' I had cried at seeing the family pictures.

Naruto grinned and pulled a camera out of his pocket, placing it on the bedside table with the photos. "Thanks, Rin-neechan," he whispered. Naruto then ignored the fold out recliner/bed and crawled onto the bed next to me. "How do you feel? I know that wasn't easy for you, Hinata-hime."

I smiled at him, "Tired and sore, but I have never been so satisfied or happy. I love you, Naruto." I sighed, resting my head against his shoulder in my favorite position to sleep, "How was your mission? Was it a wild goose chase?"

All I got in response to my question was a snore. I quietly laughed, "Naruto, you are still a bit of a knuckle head, and I love you for it, because you are my knucklehead, and the father of our two beautiful babies." He snored again, and I relaxed and closed my eyes. _He must have booked it to get back here in time, and didn't rest at all while I was in labor. No wonder he is exhausted. _"Sleep well, beloved," I whispered as sleep finally claimed me.

* * *

A/N, Take two: Yes, Minato and Sayuri have arrived, but Sasuke is getting closer to Konoha. What will happen? Oh, I have a new poll up on my profile. Mathlover 15 gave me the challenge to write a one shot on what happened when Tsunade woke up from her coma and found out what Danzo and the elders were up to. If anyone is interested in that, vote and let me know. Here are the results from my last poll, the ones to recieve the Uzu Katanas are Rin Norita Hatake (Already recieved hers), Konohamaru Sarutobi, and Tenten (Don't know her maiden name) Hyuga. Yeah! Again, please review and let me know what you think. Thanks for reading!


	26. Chapter 26

Author's note: Again, thank you to everyone who read and reviewed. Here is my next chapter, getting even closer to meeting up with the teme with the stupid haircut. I mean it, what was Kishimoto thinking when he gave Sasuke that hair? Next chapter is when you'll find out what Naruto and Neji found out and did on that mission, but right now, something else gets revealed.

Disclaimer:

Alerya: Which future Shinobi should give it this time?

(A girl who looks like Sakura with black hair, a boy who looks like Sai only with a tan and natural facial expressions and a chubby kid with brown hair appear)

Alerya: Okay, Midori, Keigo and Taka, good to see you three.

Midori: We're the future team Eight, and our sensei is...

Taka Akamichi: Midori, we can't tell them that!

Keigo: But we can say this, Alerya doesn't own Naruto! She just owns us, her OC's.

Alerya: I sure don't own Naruto, and I am not making anything off of this story. I'm just doing it for fun and to practice my writing.

Midori: At least you didn't turn me into a fangirl like my mom. I enjoy being the girl who beats the fan girls up.

Keigo: Midori, you are still as talkative as your mom. Let's get on with the story!

* * *

Kokone, a nurse in the maternity ward of the hospital, handed me my two babies. "Now, if you have any questions or concerns, just send me a message and I will be over there to help you." She gave both Minato and Sayuri a kiss on their little foreheads. "They are hard to resist, I can't wait to have children of my own."

"Thank you," I said, seated in a wheelchair. I was finally being discharged from the hospital today. It had been a very long week, but Tsunade insisted I needed it, and that the additional help of the nurses there also would be good to help Naruto and I adjust to taking care of our two little additions.

Naruto took hold of the handles of my wheelchair. "Ready to go home, you three?" he asked with his trademark grin.

"More than ready," I replied. I guess it is true for every ninja. No matter the reason, we can't stand being in the hospital for longer than a day. Once we reached the main doors of the hospital, Naruto and Iruka (who was waiting for us) removed the babies from my arms and loaded them up into baby carriers. Naruto took Minato, Iruka carried Sayuri, and Naruto created a clone in case I needed help or couldn't make it the few blocks to our apartment. Iruka had insisted on helping us, saying that it was part of his duties as godfather to the twins.

The normally ten minute walk to our apartment took almost half an hour, with villagers stopping us to congratulate us and admire the newborns. I smiled every time this happened; knowing this meant Naruto had finally been accepted by a majority of Konoha. That they were congratulating him on the healthy arrival of his babies, instead of insulting him for breeding more demon scum, was amazing. I had heard a few of those comments during my pregnancy, but only from a very few people.

When we finally made it to our apartment door, Naruto sighed, "I don't know about you, but I need a nap before these two wake up again." He dismissed the clone as he unlocked the door.

I nodded fervently, "At least they are together on their timing. Can you imagine what it would be like if one hour Minato woke up, and the next hour Sayuri woke up?"

Naruto grinned as he opened the door. As it opened, we were almost knocked over by the shout of "Surprise!"

All three of us were dumbstruck. All of our friends and senseis were waiting for us. Kakashi and Rin, the newlyweds Lee and Sakura, Kurenai and Akako, Tsunade, just to name a few. The living area was packed, and hanging on the back wall was a banner that read 'Welcome Home Hinata, Minato, and Sayuri!"

Ino and Sakura were first to the door, and took the baby carriers from Naruto and Iruka before we had recovered the ability to move. "Oh, they are so cute!" Ino squealed.

"Naruto's hair, Hinata's eyes," Sakura said, "Oh, they are so small and sweet!"

"I don't know about the small part, together their weight was almost eleven pounds," I replied. "Imagine carrying that around in your belly for months. But it was worth it."

We made our way inside, shocked that everyone had managed to fit into just the living area and the kitchen. Naruto and I gratefully sat down as Minato and Sayuri were passed around and admired by everyone.

"We have a chibi-Naruto and chibi-Hinata," Sai said as he held Minato. Yume was standing next to him, her finger being clenched by Minato's tiny fist, and an engagement ring sparkling on her hand.

Temari was gently rocking Sayuri and talking to her fiancé, "Shikamaru, what would you say if I want more than two kids?"

He gulped, "Whatever you want, my dear."

"Good answer," she grinned at him as she kept rocking the newborn, "Whose a beautiful girl, Sayuri-chan? Oh, you look just like your mother with those beautiful eyes." I smiled at the sight of the tough Temari becoming gentle as she held my daughter.

Kurenai sat next to us, "How much sleep are the two of you getting?"

"We're getting a decent amount, they wake up at the same time every two to three hours to be fed and/or changed," I replied. I looked at Akako, the solemn red-eyed toddler who was sitting on her mother's lap. "Do you want to see the babies, Aka-chan?" She nodded, and Naruto picked her up and took her to where Teuchi was now holding and admiring Minato. The little girl looked at him, and then leaned over and gave the baby a kiss on the head.

Kurenai smiled at the sight, "I wish I had a camera. That was precious."

"I think Rin has you taken care of," I replied, pointing out the medic, armed and ready with her camera. "One of her hobbies is photography."

The surprise party ended about three hours later, with everyone bidding us fare well and leaving enough food in the refrigerator and cupboard so I wouldn't have to cook for at least three days. Tsunade was the last to leave; having helped us put the babies down in their bassinette after I had nursed them.

"Naruto, I believe it is time."

He nodded, "Yes, it is. You can make the announcement whenever you want, Tsunade-baachan."

"That won't be the only announcement I make, Naruto Namikaze," she replied with a wink, "I will also be announcing my successor as Hokage as well."

Naruto gaped at her, "So soon? I'm only eighteen!"

"I'm not retiring immediately, don't worry! I still need to train you, but this will prevent anything like what Danzo did if anything should happen to me before I retire." She gave us both hugs and left.

* * *

A loud wailing broke the silence and woke the two of us up. "Who is it, Minato or Sayuri?" Naruto mumbled as he got out of bed.

I giggled as I also got up, "It's Minato, but in a few seconds, Sayuri will get started." A second wailing joined in right as I finished my sentence.

Naruto laughed at the timing and got Sayuri out of the bassinette. I picked up Minato and began nursing him. Naruto tried to keep Sayuri happy until it was her turn.

"Tomorrow is the day," I said, gently rocking in one of the two chairs that had been given to us.

"Tsunade-baachan will make her announcement," Naruto murmured, sitting in the other rocking chair and letting Sayuri suck on his finger. "The entire village will know I am the son of the Yondaime and Red Whirlpool."

"And you also will be named as successor to Tsunade, the future Rokudaime Hokage," I added. "You've reached your dream."

"More than one of them. I know who my parents are and I finally have a family." He gave Sayuri a quick kiss on her little forehead, and gently stroked her blonde hair.

I finished nursing Minato and we traded twins. A comfortable silence descended as we cared for our nine-day-old babies. Big changes would come into our lives tomorrow, but these moments would stay the same. I studied my daughters face, intent as she nursed, and was amazed that both Naruto and I could produce two perfect, pure, beautiful children such as these. I then glanced at my husband, who had the same look of contemplation and amazement that I knew I wore.

At the gathering the nest day, Tsunade stood at the place where she had been coronated five years earlier, wearing her official Hokage robes. "Five years ago, I vowed to serve and protect this village as the Godaime Hokage. In about a years time, I will be retiring." The entire village roared in shock. We all knew how old Tsunade really was, despite her appearance, but to many of the people, she seemed ageless and very strong, especially after she had woken up from that coma. "I have chosen my successor, but first, I need to set a record straight. Most everyone here believes that the night the Kyuubi no Kitsune attacked, the Namikaze clan was destroyed. The most prominent and supposedly last member of the clan was the Yondaime Hokage, the Yellow Flash of Konoha, Minato Namikaze. What only a few people knew was that his wife, Kushina, the Katana Mistress of the Hidden Leaf and one of our most powerful kunoichi, gave birth to their son that night." A gasp sounded from the assembled shinobi and civilians. "Even though both Minato and Kushina died that night, their son survived. He was raised in an orphanage, and became a shinobi of this village. He now holds the rank of Jonin. Who is the last Namikaze?" Tsunade paused, her brown eyes scanning the crowd and coming to rest on Naruto and me. "He is the same newborn child that Minato sealed the Kyuubi's spirit and chakra into that night. The shinobi that has been known for the last eighteen years as Naruto Uzumaki is actually Naruto Namikaze, son of Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki, husband of Hinata Hyuga, father of Minato and Sayuri, and will take my place as the Rokudaime Hokage!"

At first there was shocked silence at her announcement, and then a cheer began to sound. Amid the cheering, I heard a few muttered grumblings. "I can't believe the Kyuubi brat is going to be the next Hokage, or that he is the Yondaime's son!" an old man said to his wife.

"Well, he is the spitting image of the Yondaime. Only the Namikaze have that hair color," she replied.

Another person standing by them added, "That also explains why Hinata-sama wasn't sealed and disowned when she eloped with the Kyuubi Jinchuriki. Her father knew that he was the Namikaze heir, since he was friends with the Yondaime." I smiled inwardly at that.

"Naruto Namikaze, come here!" Tsunade called out over the din of many people discussing what she had just announced.

Naruto shifted Minato in his arms and turned pleading blue eyes at me, "Come with me, Hinata-hime?"

I smiled as I adjusted the sleeping Sayuri on my shoulder. "Always, Naruto-kun."

"We'll take care of them," Kakashi said as he and Rin came up to us. "We need the practice anyway."

"Okay." Kakashi took Minato and Rin immediately cuddled with little Sayuri. Knowing our babies were in good hands, we made our way up to the platform where Tsunade was waiting.

"People of Konoha, I present to you the future Rokudaime Hokage and his wife, Naruto and Hinata Namikaze!" Naruto grinned and waved, while I blushed and tried not to faint from all of the blood rushing to my head.

Afterward, the members of the Konoha Twelve ambushed us before we could return home.

"How long have you known that you were the Yondaime's son?" Ino demanded, practically in Naruto's face.

Naruto immediately looked uncomfortable and rubbed the back of his head. "Almost two years," he admitted, "I just wanted to prove myself to the village before they knew my real name."

Ino now rounded on me, "Hinata, did you know before you got married?"

"I was there when Tsunade told Naruto," I shrugged. "I didn't care. Naruto didn't change; he is still the same person I have loved since I was eight. Just his name is different."

Everyone, except Sakura, Sai, Neji, and Tenten began bombarding us with questions. We answered as best we could, but soon Kakashi and Rin came up, holding two fussy babies.

"I think they're hungry," Rin said, bouncing Sayuri in her arms to try and soothe her. Naruto took her from Rin, and Sayuri quickly quieted.

"Perhaps they just wanted their parents," Neji said as Kakashi handed Minato to me. He stopped fussing and looked at me with his pale bluish-lavender Byakugan eyes.

"Thanks for saving us," Naruto whispered into Sayuri's ear. I giggled when I heard that. Our friends weren't happy about us keeping something this big from them.

"Did anyone even suspect Naruto was the Yondaime's son?" Kiba asked.

"I was curious," Shikamaru admitted, "Anyone who has seen pictures of the Yondaime can tell Naruto bears a very strong resemblance. I just figured that it would be explained in time, and I was right."

Temari narrowed her green eyes at him, "And you never mentioned this because?"

"The Yondaime had a lot of enemies. If Naruto was his kid, they would try to get their revenge on him through Naruto," Shikamaru explained, trying not to look nervous as Temari's hand reached for her fan. "It was in Naruto's best interests for me not to say anything!"

She glared at him for a moment, "Good answer." Shikamaru visibly wilted in relief. She then turned to us, "Do you mind if I write and tell Gaara? He'll be excited to know that you are also a Kage's son."

"Sure, I will too," Naruto said, gently rocking Sayuri back to sleep. Minato was still wide awake, his pale eyes taking in everything.

"So," I whispered to my baby, "Now everyone knows you were named for your grandfather. Are you happy about that?"

"He looks like it and I am sure his grandfather is as well," Naruto replied, "Shall we go home and put them down? Sayuri is out."

We quickly said our goodbyes and headed back home. As we passed the Hyugas, I noticed many of the clan elders looking at us with something bordering respect and nervousness in their eyes. I knew they must have been shaken when Tsunade announced that the person their former heiress eloped with was none other than the Namikaze heir. I didn't care; I just wanted to get home. But then I met my father's eyes, and he gave me a slight smile and nod. I guessed that meant something good.

Tsunade caught us a few minutes later, "I'm coming with you. I need to spend some time with my precious grandbabies." She winked as she said that. We just laughed and let her join us.


	27. Chapter 27

Author's Note: Sorry this chapter is so short, I just want to get to the next one really quick. Thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed. Thanks for your comments! Now, hmmm, what isgoing on in Konoha right now?

Disclaimer:

Alerya: Who should I introduce now? I know! (snaps fingers) Ahh, the power of authors.

(Three kids appear, two girls and a guy. The guy has Inuzuka clan markings, one of the girls wears a green trenchcoat much like Shino, and the final girl wears brown and carries a wakizashi)

Alerya: Hi, Shippo Inuzuka (I think shippo means tail, give me a break I was eating a lot of sugar), Rukia Aburame and Takara Miyaki. Can you guys give the disclaimer?

Takara: Sure, Alerya doesn't own anything to do with Naruto, just this plot and her OC's, of which I am one. Takara Miyaki, Kenjutsu and Ninjutsu specialist.

Rukia: How much sugar did you have for Breakfast, Takara?

Shippo: Or did you sleep at all last night? You are more hyper than usual.

Takara: No, I just helped the Namikaze twins pull a prank on our sensei, which he totally fell for.

Rukia: As interesting as that sounds, let's get back to the story.

* * *

"I haven't seriously trained in months!" I exclaimed, pulling my black tank top over my mesh armor shirt. I was finally cleared to train by Tsunade and Rin, and since the entire Konoha Twelve had the day off, we had all decided to train together. I finished getting dressed and quickly strapped on my ninja tools and slung my katana across my back.

"Hinata-hime, you are starting to sound like me!" Naruto laughed as he also finished. A wail from the other room reminded us of additional duties we needed to take care of.

I replied as we moved into the nursery, "What? I feel like I haven't been doing anything lately, other than making sure Tsunade-baachan does her work and taking care of these adorable ones." I picked Sayuri up and moved to the changing table to change and dress her. Naruto did the same for Minato. "Oh, you said something last night about that mission you and Neji went on before Minato and Sayuri were born. What was it you wanted to tell me?"

Naruto replied as he struggled to get Minato dressed, "We did encounter some members of Team Taka while we were gone. We also met with a Kiri hunter Nin who teamed up with us to help take out the Kiri shinobi Sasuke has recruited."

"What happened?" I asked, dressing Sayuri in a warm purple and white dress.

"We set a trap and ambushed Jugo, the Kumo Nin, and the Kiri Nin the hunter was after, I can't remember their names. Neji killed the Kumo, the hunter managed to disable and capture his mark, and I faced Jugo. I used the Five Elements Chakra seal on him to disrupt his chakra, which took away his ability to transform."

"Wow," I replied, "How did Jugo react when he couldn't transform?"

"He was grateful. He no longer felt like that he would lose control," Naruto replied. "I warned him that it might not work forever, but if he wanted to, we could find a way to make sure it stays permanent."

"Another seal for me to design?" I replied, "Maybe the Kekkei Genkai Seal would work after a slight modification."

"It's okay, Hinata," Naruto quickly said, "He's fine with it how it is, and if he feels like it is starting to break, he'll come here and if I need to, I'll do it again. He's quit Team Taka since he no longer needs Sasuke to keep his other personality under control." He was still trying to dress the baby. About a minute later he turned pleading blue eyes at me, "Hinata, help!"

I just giggled and helped him finish getting the baby dressed. We loaded the twins into the stroller with all of the stuff we would need and my sealing scrolls as well and headed out the door.

Neji and Tenten were waiting for us outside. "What took you so long?" Neji asked.

"I'm still mastering the art of dressing squirmy babies," Naruto admitted, scratching the back of his head.

Tenten laughed, "At least you have plenty of opportunities to practice, Naruto, and you are willing to help. Shall we get going? Everyone is waiting for us at Training Ground 12." We followed her to the area, the last ones to arrive.

Everyone was there, including the three Sand Siblings. Since Temari and Shikamaru were getting married next week, her family had come to visit. Matsuri, now four months pregnant, wasn't here to train. She had remained back in the village with the Naras. Yoshino had insisted on taking her shopping for baby stuff.

"Finally, the Namikazes and Hyugas are here!" Ino exclaimed, "Along with the two guests of honor." She made a beeline for the stroller and peered in, "Hello, Babies. Can I hold them?"

"Sorry, Ino, no," I said, "We just got them to sleep. I couldn't find a babysitter to watch them, so we had to bring them along. Shall we get started?"

"Can I baby-sit them here, to make sure they stay safe?" she pleaded.

"No need." I grabbed one of my sealing scrolls and infused my chakra into one I had previously prepared. "Protection Seal!" I pressed the seal to the ground underneath the stroller and watched it spread until it fully encircled the stroller. "Now nothing and no one I don't want to can get through to them. All of us can of we need to, but no one else."

"Hinata, it is amazing what you can do with seals," Kiba muttered.

"You should see what Naruto can do with Ninjutsu," I replied modestly, "I just have a head for Fuuinjutsu."

"Can we get started now? I have a date this afternoon," Kiba then announced to everyone there. We all rolled our eyes in unison.

I unsheathed my katana. "What are we doing first?"

"I have an idea," Sakura said, "How about we do a rematch of our first Chunin exams? The preliminary matches we had before the third phase, so Ino and I, Kiba and Naruto, Hinata and Neji, Tenten and Temari, and Gaara and Lee all get to face off again. Shino and Kankuro will actually fight their match, and Shikamaru can fight either Chouji or Sai."

"I'll fight Sai," Shikamaru said.

"Which means I am the proctor," Chouji said, "Here are the rules: nothing that will either kill someone or put them in the hospital at all. Minor wounds that Sakura and Ino can easily heal are okay, but these are spars, not duels to the death. Let's have some fun!"

"I want to go first!" Kiba yelled.

"Why?" Naruto asked.

"Because this may be the only chance I'll have to kick your butt without getting into trouble, future Rokudaime Hokage."

"If you can even get close to me," Naruto shot back. "You might need more than just Akamaru to take me down."

"Naruto-kun," I whispered, "Be nice and don't hurt him."

Kiba overheard what I had said. "Who ever would have imagined you tied to Hinata's apron strings, Dead last? You are so whipped."

Okay, Kiba was an old teammate and like an older brother to me (A very annoying older brother at times), but that was going a little too far. "Forget what I said, kick his butt. If he gets hurt a little, that is why we have Sakura here."

Naruto grinned at me, "Thanks, Hinata-hime." We kissed and the two of them got started. Kiba and Akamaru gave it all they had, but they were completely outclassed by Naruto's skills and abilities.

Kiba managed to wheeze out, "I know when I'm beat. At least I can say I lost to the Hokage."

"Not for another eleven months," Naruto grinned. "Good match, Kiba. That was a lot of fun. Who's up next?"

"The next spar will be between Neji Hyuga and Hinata Namikaze," Chouji announced, taking his role as proctor very seriously.

Naruto went to stand by the twins while I faced Neji in the space created by our friends and comrades. "Please, no speeches about how my defeat is inevitable this time," I said, settling into the Juuken stance and activating my Byakugan.

"Don't worry, I won't," Neji replied, mirroring my movements. "I have absolutely no clue who will win this match."

We started out with just our Juuken, but were never able to land a direct hit on the other. Neji and I had trained in it too long together; we could easily read and anticipate each other's movements and strikes.

"This is different than their last one," Shikamaru remarked to no one in particular.

"Yeah, Neji's not shooting his mouth off and trying to kill Hinata this time," Temari replied. "Come on, you two. This is boring, do something different!"

"Okay," I replied, and did a back flip to gain some space in between the two of us. "I was hoping not to have to use this," and drew my Whirlpool katana.

"Rotation!" Neji immediately activated his defensive technique. I was hoping for that.

I switched my katana to my left hand and began gathering chakra into my right palm, molding, swirling, and condensing it into a sphere. Everyone gasped in surprise. They recognized the jutsu, the Rasengan, which Naruto had begun teaching me after we got married. It had taken me six months, but I had mastered it.

I thrust the Rasengan into Neji's rotation, canceling out the barrier. I then grasped my katana with both hands and yelled, "Hidden Whirlpool Katana Art: Tsunami Crash!" Water erupted from the river behind me, forming a wave, and then crashed down onto Neji, right where my katana was pointing. No one else, not even I got wet. Neji was hit square on, knocking him off of his feet and drenching him from head to foot.

Neji was dazed from the strike, so Chouji announced, "Winner, Hinata Namikaze!"

Tenten helped the dripping wet Neji to his feet while Naruto gave me a hug. "That was amazing. You got that technique perfectly."

"That was impressive," Neji spoke up, "I had no idea Naruto had taught you the Rasengan."

"He began teaching me right after we got married," I informed my cousin.

A somewhat familiar mocking tone echoed through the training ground. "Who would have believed that the dobe and the spineless princess would have ended up together. Apparently losers attract losers."

We all turned and saw a familiar black-haired man who appeared to be around our ages. None of us had seen him in years but we all knew who he was.

Naruto leveled his piercing blue gaze at the man, "Welcome back to Konohagakure, Sasuke."

* * *

**Evil Cliffhanger no Jutsu!!!!!!  
**

Please review and tell me what you think. I can't wait to see this battle.


	28. Chapter 28

Author's note: Merry Christmas, Everyone, (Or just Happy Holidays if you don't celebrate Christmas) Here is my present to you, the readers, Ultimate Ninja Showdown, Konoha 12 verses Team Taka! I did my best with the fights, but I know I need work on them, you don't need to tell me that. This is actually the first big battle I have ever written. Please read, enjoy, and review! Reviews will be considered christmas presents, and Flames will be used to ... hmm, destroy Madara and Danzo! (That seriously grossed me out in the manga what had been done to his arm. I won't spoil it for anyone who hasn't read it yet, but trust me, it's gross.)

Disclaimer:

Alerya: Who do I need to still introduce? Wait, I know! (Snaps fingers)

(A boy who looks just like Naruto only with pale bluish-purple Byakugan eyes and a boy who looks just like Neji only with a personality appear)

Alerya: Presenting two more future Konoha Shinobi, Minato Namikaze and Hizashi Hyuga!

Minato: Why didn't you introduce us with my sister, or our teammate for that matter?

Alerya: It slipped my mind.

Hizashi: We'll forgive you, this time. Alerya doesn't own Naruto, just her plot and us!

Minato: Hizashi, I think I need to go make sure Sayuri is all right.

Hizashi: Dude, she has a date tonight. If you try to spy on her, she will hurt you. Stay out of it, even though I am on your side.

Alerya: Hey, wait, I thought you two liked her boyfriend, he is your teammate!

Minato: Still, we have to make sure he is good enough for her.

Alerya: Don't do anything stupid, you two.

* * *

"Amazing, the rest of the Rookie Nine, plus that psycho's team, the cripple's puppet, and the Sand siblings are here to greet me, how quaint," Sasuke sneered, his black eyes traveling over every person there. I could see the stroller where my babies were sleeping out of the corner of my eye. _I must keep Sasuke from noticing them!_

"Actually, we would have been just fine without ever seeing your ugly face again, teme," I snapped out, my hand tightening around my katana hilt. I resisted the temptation to look at the stroller just in case any of Sasuke's cronies were near by. The last thing I wanted to do was draw attention to the sleeping Minato and Sayuri. Naruto was thinking the same thing, I could tell by the way his jaw was clenched and the grip he had on my shoulder.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at me, "Wow, I'm surprised, looks like the impossible has happened. You finally grew a spine, Hi…tomi?"

"Her name is Hinata, teme," Naruto shot back, trying to sound calm. I began reaching for the scroll that had the Kekkei Genkai seal, but all I found was my ninja tools. _Oh, darn it! My sealing scroll is still in the twins diaper bag! This is not good! Of all days that I had to shove everything in there, why did it have to be today?_

"What do you want, Sasuke-teme? We can't allow you to destroy our home," Sakura asked, sounding disdainful. You could still see the hurt in her eyes as she spoke, despite her calm appearance. This wasn't easy for her.

"Aren't you glad to see me, Sakura-chan?" Sasuke replied, his voice carelessly casual. "I have finally returned, and maybe once my work here is done, we can go out on that date you have always wanted."

"You could drop dead for all I care," she replied, now starting to sound angry. "What do you think I am, some sort of a cheap commodity? I am, now and forever, completely unavailable to you or any other person." She pulled her glove off of her left hand, and showed him her wedding rings, "I got married last month, just for your information."

_I can just see Sasuke, where are the others? Byakugan!_ I could also see that Neji had his activated as well. We quickly began scanning the area, looking for the other members of Team Taka. _We need to let the ANBU and other villagers know what is going on. When I get a chance, I'll need to summon Pakkun and the others immediately._

Her reply was a slight shock to Sasuke. "Who is the unlucky guy to be saddled with an annoying banshee such as you? I feel pity for him. It's obvious it's not the dobe."

"You," Lee replied, jumping to his wife's defense, "I am the lucky guy. Sakura-chan is an amazing shinobi and counted among the Second Sannin."

"We had heard rumors that a new set of Sannin had been named: Genjutsu, Taijutsu, and Ninjutsu specialists. So, Sakura is one of them, the standards really have fallen to be a Sannin," Sasuke replied disdainfully.

A sudden wailing broke through the training ground. _Oh, no! Why now? Hinata, use your head and summon the ninken now, while Sasuke is distracted. Then give into your motherly instincts._ I did my best to keep my fear from my eyes, but my body still tensed and betrayed me.

"Whose child is that?" he asked. No one answered. I quickly cut my thumb on my katana blade, getting the blood I needed for the summon.

He began walking, looking for the source of the wailing. We all followed him with our eyes, while I quickly performed the handsigns. He saw the stroller and walked towards it, only to get repelled by my seal when he was about two feet away. He had still gotten close enough to glimpse the twins.

"Who would have believed that the Kyuubi Jinchuriki was allowed to breed with the Hyuga heiress?" Sasuke scoffed. "I thought those brats were lying when they told me the dobe was going to be a father before I killed them. Maybe I should do the village a favor be eliminating these mistaken demon offspring." He drew his katana.

In a flash, Naruto had drawn his own Uzu katana, "Get away from them!"

I finished the handsigns. "Summoning Jutsu!" Pakkun and the rest of the ninken appeared, "Pakkun, get word to the village! Sasuke and Team Taka are here! We will need support and every shinobi needs to be on the alert!"

"Got it, Hinata." With that, they were off.

Sasuke ignored what I had done, "All of the shinobi in Konoha can't stop me. That was a useless gesture. I do find it interesting that the demon is so determined to preserve his offspring. I didn't know that demons had feelings."

That got me mad. _Never call my Naruto a demon! _"Naruto isn't the demon here. You are, Sasuke. You are the traitor."

"The village betrayed me and my clan!"

"We are here to serve the Hokage and the village, not the other way around!" Sai replied, anger coloring his tone. _He must really be pissed then, if he is showing his anger like this._

"Exactly. That was the problem with your clan. The Uchiha are elite, the superior clan, so the village must exist to serve them and give them whatever they want," Shikamaru sneered, "What a load of crap."

"All the rest of the clans, even the Hyuga, operate by the principal of village first, then family, and last clan. Your clan was clan first, family second, and village last. No surprise it was so easy for them to break their oaths," Shino stated, a touch of disgust coloring his tone.

"Get away from our children, Sasuke," Naruto threatened, his voice perfectly controlled, but his eyes were turning red and his whisker-scars were beginning to darken. He was so furious that he was starting to tap into the Kyuubi's chakra.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu!" Shikamaru's shadow merged with Sasuke's and began forcing him to walk away from the stroller. "Naruto, get yourself under control. Remember, Sasuke can mess with the Kyuubi and I really don't want to have to fight both of them."

"Hinata, get your scroll," Naruto hissed, starting to regain control.

"No problem." I sprinted for the stroller, but was stopped by a familiar figure carrying a huge sword.

"Let's see you incapacitate me this time without your lightning-wielding sensei, Katana Princess," Suigetsu said with a grin.

I drew my katana. _He is right; lightning is one of his biggest weaknesses. But I know what I can do. _"Hidden Whirlpool Katana Art: Tsunami Crash!" I gestured with my chakra charged katana, and once again, the water in the river obeyed my command, smashing into Suigetsu and driving him backward while smashing him into the ground.

"Nice trick, but all it can do is keep me away from you. Do you really know how to fence with that thing, or is all you can do is to command water?" he sneered.

"There is more to these weapons than meets the eye," I replied, my Byakugan still activated and keeping track of everyone. Naruto was going against Sasuke with their katanas clashing against each other, Neji and Tenten were tag teaming an Iwa shinobi, Sakura was beating the crap out of the red haired Karin, Gaara was fighting a rogue Konoha, Temari and Shikamaru were battling another Iwa, Lee was also fighting an Iwa, Chouji and Ino were tag teaming the other Konoha rouge, Sai was fighting another Iwa, while Kiba, Shino and Akamaru were taking care of the remaining Iwa.

"Keep your gaze on me!" Suigetsu yelled, "Water Release: Great Water Arm!" His arm muscles bulged, and I could see additional chakra and what appeared to be water running though them. He raised the sword he had stolen from the grave of Zabuza Momochi and swung it at me.

"Rotation!" I yelled, and began the jutsu, still holding my chakra charged katana. The blast of chakra knocked him back again and damaged the top portion of his sword.

"Hey, why did you do that?"

"Because you aren't worthy to wield that sword if you had to steal it," I replied.

Suigetsu sneered, "Spare me the drabble." He ran to the river and stepped in it. "Water Release: Giant Wave Crash!" His body merged with the water and formed a wave that was going to crash down on me.

"Hidden Whirlpool Katana Art: Water Backlash Wave!" I yelled. My chakra and katana worked together to gather the remaining water that Suigetsu wasn't using, and sent him and his wave jutsu recoiling back. _I need to end this now, or I won't have enough chakra to seal Sasuke's Sharingan. _I took another glance at my babies. The Protection Seal was still holding, and they were safe for the moment. _The other reason I need to end it soon, I have to care for my children. I guess I have to use that jutsu._

"Guess what, Suigetsu? I don't need Kakashi-sensei here to help me take you down," I said, "I happen to have a secondary elemental affinity, Lightning. Lightning Release: Electric Arc!" Lightning erupted from my hand and arched to the water, which resulted in Suigetsu being electrocuted into unconsciousness.

Without stopping to make sure he was fully unconscious, I ran to the stroller and grabbed my sealing scroll and two pacifiers in one movement. "Quiet, you two," I whispered, placing the pacifiers in their mouths while I checked the seal with my Byakugan. It was still holding strong and showed no signs of breaking. I took a deep breath, "All right, time to go seal your a** , Sasuke."

* * *

**Evil Cliffhanger no Jutsu!**

A/N, take two: I am so evil. Don't worry, I'll do my best to update before Christmas, but I can't make any guarantees. I came up with the Electric Arc Jutsu and the Katana Jutsus. (I admit, the Water Backlash wave is based off of the Backlash Wave from InuYasha, another great manga/anime.) Don't mess with a parent protecting their children, that's all I have to say to Sasuke. Let me know what you think! Oh, I still have the poll up about the Tsunade one-shot on my profile, so vote if you want to/haven't yet. I will probably need a beta for that, considering I don't know how well I can get into her head. Any volunteers? It will probably be up after the new year. Happy Holidays!


	29. Chapter 29

Author's Note: I hope everyone had a great Christmas, and here is my next chapter. I just got put on a deadline to finish this story, and so I will have it completed by the new year (fortunately there is only an epiloge left). My family is moving to an apartment without wifi, so I din't know when I'll be able to submit the Tsunade one shot. But do not worry, I will do it, even if it takes some time. Just so you know, I will need a beta for it. Any volunteers, pretty please? Please read and review, flames will be used to heat up my car (the heater isn't working too great and it was 13 degree F tonight, brrr)

Disclaimer: Alerya :Who haven't I introduced yet? Wait, the final two! (Snaps fingers)

(A boy who looks like Shikamaru with green eyes and a boy with brown hair and light brown eyes appear)

Alerya: Here are the last two remaining members of the future Team Seven, Kuzon Nara and Ryo Maseshu!

Ryo: Why did you introduce our teammate first?

Kuzon: Don't be troublesome, Ryo. Sayuri just showed up first and caused a bit of inadvertant chaos as usual.

Ryo: Good point, at least she wasn't with her brother, that gets dangerous.

Alerya: Will you two stop talking about your teammate and give the disclaimer?

Kuzon: Alerya doesn't own anything to do with Naruto!

Ryo: But she does own us, Sayuri; Team Eight which is Midori, Taka, and Keigo; Team Nine, Takara, Shippo and Rukia; and Team Ten, Minato, Hizashi, and Obito. Enjoy the story everyone. You'll get to meet us soon, hopefully. (Glares at Alerya)

Alerya: I'll do my best, Promise. Even if no one wants to read it, I will write about you guys.

* * *

I ran toward were Naruto and Sasuke were battling. Naruto was doing his best to avoid Sasuke's gaze, knowing that he would be easy pickings if Sasuke caught him with the Magenkyo Sharingan.

"Hinata, look out!" Sakura yelled. I turned and saw Karin manage to break away from Sakura and head towards me. Before I could make a move to defend myself, a puppet appeared in her path and she hurtled straight into its stomach. It was the Black Ant, one of Kankuro's puppets.

"I leave for five minutes, and come back to find out there is a full-fledged battle happening?" Kankuro asked in amazement as he wielded his puppets. "You Leaf ninja sure have a weird idea of fun."

"This isn't fun," I replied, "Sasuke just has bad timing, or he is just so arrogant that he thinks that he can beat all of us. I'm going to help Naruto. Kankuro, help the others. This seal will require twelve people to cast it; I no longer have enough chakra to cast it on my own without killing myself from chakra exhaustion."

"Yeah, that's not a good idea. I have no desire to see Naruto go full Kyuubi because his wife did something stupid and died," he muttered. "I'll do my best to free up people, though they are definitely holding their own. Is there anyone who won't be able to help?"

"Just Lee, because he can't mold chakra. Everyone else can, if they will follow my instructions. I've already done the hard part," patting the scroll at my side, "Thanks to a little help from Sai and his ink abilities." I took off, and saw Kankuro get to work.

Sasuke began taunting Naruto, "So, the nameless orphan Uzumaki dobe faces against the last of the mighty, elite Uchiha clan. This almost sounds like it should be an epic battle, except you were never good enough to beat me on your own without the Kyuubi's help, dobe."

"You are wrong, Teme. I do have a family, and I would appreciate it if you would stop calling me 'dobe' and by the wrong name. Uzumaki is the name of my mother, Kushina Uzumaki, the Katana Mistress of the Hidden Leaf."

Sasuke gasped, it was obvious he had heard of the name, "Red Whirlpool is your mother?"

"Yes. Do you know who her husband was? I'll tell you, it was Minato Namikaze, the Yondaime Hokage, and the man who sealed the Kyuubi no Kitsune into his only child so that Konoha would have a chance to stand against and defeat Madara Uchiha. You say the village betrayed your clan, guess what? It truly betrayed mine when they refused to honor my father's last wishes. I still wear the Leaf hitai-ite, despite that. Sasuke, please, don't you realize yet that all those responsible for the Uchiha massacre are dead? Not a single guilty party is still alive! Give it up!"

"Never, not until Konoha is in ashes!" Sasuke said, finally locking eyes with Naruto. "Got ya, dobe, Tsukiyomi!"

I tackled Naruto and knocked him out of the way before the genjutsu completely activated, and yelled, "Ginkagami Byakugan!" My advanced dojutsu activated just in time. I knew, from my training with Kakashi, that Ginkagami could repel some of the Magenkyo attacks, such as Tsukiyomi. I wasn't sure about Ameterasu or Susanoo.

Sasuke was shocked to realize that Tsukiyomi had ne effect on me. "What is this power of the Hyuga?"

"The upper level of the Byakugan, the Ginkagami," I replied, "We kept it secret like the Uchiha did the Magenkyo. However, the ability to unlock it depends on a person's genetics and chakra level and development, not their feelings."

"Hn. I wonder what would happen if the Magenkyo Sharingan was to combine with this Ginkagami? It would be worth leaving you alive," Sasuke mused, his eyes raking my body. "It is obvious you are fertile and can have children."

"Hidden Whirlpool Katana Art: Typhoon Slash!" Naruto yelled, the wind attack blasting from his katana, slicing into Sasuke, spilling his blood, and pushing him away from me. "Don't you ever threaten my wife or my family again!"

Sasuke got back up, his Magenkyo disengaged, but his normal Sharingan still active. "Dobe, I am going to enjoy this."

"Sand Coffin!" Sand suddenly encased Sasuke's legs, arms, and neck, completely immobilizing him, but leaving plenty of skin showing. Gaara appeared next to me. "Kankuro mentioned you needed some help in casting the seal? What do you want us to do, Hinata?"

I quickly unsealed my scroll and kicked it open on the ground. There were twelve pairs of seals drawn on the paper, set in pairs. I glanced around, my normal Byakugan activated, noticing everyone's chakra levels. "We need to make sure everyone is balanced. When I call out a pair, which is who will cast together at the same time. I am going by chakra levels so no one should risk exhausting all of their chakra. Come and get a seal when I call out your names. The sets are Sakura and Ino, Sai and Shino, Shikamaru and Tenten, Chouji and Kiba, Naruto and Gaara, Neji and I. Don't look into Sasuke's eyes, he can still try and get you with the Magenkyo. I can't either; I don't have enough chakra left to repel it. Choose a pair! Use your chakra to lift the seal from the scroll. The seals you choose say where they are to be placed on the body."

Chouji handed me a food pill, "Here, Hinata, you need this."

"I can't, Chouji, I'm nursing," I replied, blushing at my reply.

Sakura overheard me, "It will be fine, just this one time, Hinata. You need the chakra." I nodded and ate the pill.

Everyone followed my directions and stood in a circle surrounding Sasuke. I could see Temari, Kankuro and Lee still battling the few remaining members of Taka, but they were going down quickly. "Begin, and follow my lead!" I called out, a part of me amazed at my boldness. I cut the palm carrying the seal with a kunai, letting the blood mix with the ink. The other eleven sealers followed my lead. I was standing on Naruto's right, and nodded at him. He sprinted forward, Gaara quickly understanding and they both transferred the bloody seals onto Sasuke. "Two seals!"

Sakura and Ino were next, "Four seals!"

Sai and Shino followed them, "Six seals!"

"Eight seals!" Chouji and Kiba left their marks and blood on him.

"Ten seals," Shikamaru and Tenten slammed their inked and bloody palms onto Sasuke.

Finally, Neji and I transferred our bloody seals onto Sasuke, one on either side of his eye. "Twelve seals!" I had the seals placed at specific points along Sasuke's Chakra system, to block it and shut it down. Just the first ten would shut down a normal ninja's chakra network, but the final two were specifically designed to shut down a kekkei genkai, just depending on where they were placed. Dojutsus were always at the eyes.

I began calling out handsigns, and everyone followed my lead. You could feel the chakra we were gathering, and could tell it was powerful. "What are you doing to me?" Sasuke yelled.

We ignored him and continued molding our chakra. Finally we were done. We all yelled in unison, "Juni no Kekkei Genkai Sealing Jutsu!" Neji and I still had our Byakugan activated and we could see the chakra from the casters mixing with the blood and ink. It began sinking into Sasuke's chakra network, blocking the pathways and completely sealing the charka points in his eyes.

Once it was finished, I said in a rather tired voice, "Let him go, Gaara. It is done. He is no longer a threat or a shinobi. The sealing was successful, his chakra network and Sharingan are completely sealed away, and because the twelve of us combined our blood with the ink, it would take all twelve of us to remove it." I sat down, feeling exhausted, and allowed myself a small smile, "He can't even pass the Sharingan on to his offspring, like any women would want to have his babies."

"I wouldn't," Sakura said.

"Likewise," Ino added.

"The babies I want will have Byakugan eyes," Tenten smirked, "It is clearly the superior dojutsu."

"I'd only want to have more children with Naruto," I said, glancing at my babies, greatly relieved to discover that the Protection Seal had held the entire time. "But not for at least two or three years."

Sasuke grabbed a kunai, "I don't need my chakra or my Sharingan to defeat you, any of you! You are first, demon whore, for doing this to me." He began to charge, but was stopped by a flash of light and Naruto holding a kunai to his neck. "You can perform the Hiraishin?"

"Of course, it is my father's jutsu, and how I became the Ninjutsu Sannin," Naruto replied. "Give up, Sasuke. We are taking you in so you can be tried for the murders of a number of Konoha shinobi, such as Moegi and Udon, along with numerous other crimes."

"Never!"

Naruto was about to make a move, but was stopped by a command from Sakura, "No, Naruto, let me!" She quickly drew her poisoned senbon, "I won't even need a genjutsu to force you to come with us, Sasuke. The poison on these should be enough to paralyze you." She quickly threw them, and they pierced his skin in multiple places, adding to the wounds Naruto had already given him.

Sasuke now lunged at her, despite already being affected by the poison. Kiba muttered, "Had he taken stubbornness lessons from Naruto?"

"No," Shikamaru replied, his eyes studying Sasuke, "He's trying to force us to kill him, so he can escape being faced with the fact that he failed, and will never be able to avenge the Uchiha. He has been humiliated and can't cope with it."

Sasuke continued to struggle, but finally lost his battle with the poison and collapsed. Naruto began to tie him up and said, "Nice try, Sasuke-teme, but you will still have to pay for your crimes. If you die, it will not be by our hands."

Sasuke glared at him, but was unable to reply. His gaze traveled the length of the training ground, seeing all of Team Taka dead or unconscious. He was defeated, we knew it, and so did he. Lee, Temari, and Kankuro joined us. "Is it over?" Temari asked.

"Yes, it finally is."

Akamaru was the only one of us with enough energy to carry Sasuke, so once the ANBU finally arrived to take control of Taka's survivors, he got to drag Sasuke's bound form back to the village. It was quite a sight, all of the Konoha Twelve completely wiped (Naruto pushing the stroller), the Sand siblings looking like they were sleep walking, and a large white dog dragging in Sasuke Uchiha. We were met at the gate by Ibiki Morino, Yamato and Tsunade.

"Hey, Morino-san! You want him?" Kankuro asked, giving Sasuke a slight kick.

"The prodigal son has been returned, dragged kicking and screaming," Yamato observed.

"The ANBU has taken control of the surviving members of Team Taka," Shino reported.

"Thank you, I was about to go leave to assist them," Yamato replied.

Tsunade smiled at us as Ibiki picked up the bound Sasuke and headed toward ANBU headquarters. "Good job, all of you. I can honestly say tht Konoha Twelve are my most loyal and dependable ninja. I can receive your reports tomorrow, for now, go home and sleep. You all look like death warmed over. What exactly did you all do?"

"A lot of fighting and then we helped seal Sasuke," Kiba replied, while yawning. "Let's go home, Akamaru."

As they trotted off, I turned to Naruto, "We'd better head home. I need to feed the twins, whether they are hungry or not." Naruto nodded and we headed home.

Once I had fed the twins (No apparent side effects from the food pill) and we had laid them down in their crib, Naruto collapsed into one of the rocking chairs and I sat on his lap.

"It worked," I whispered, "My seal actually worked. I could see it working."

"We defeated him, all of us working together, working for the common goal of protecting our home and loved ones. Sasuke never understood that, he was too focused on vengeance. You did great today, Hinata-hime." He held me tightly to his chest, tears falling into my hair. "I was so scared when he threatened Minato and Sayuri, and then you later on. I just wanted to rip him apart with my bare hands."

"Shh, it's okay, Naruto-kun," I whispered, "I was terrified as well, for both Minato and Sayuri, and you as well. You didn't even have enough time to go into Sage mode when you two began fighting. We are still alive and Sasuke is no longer dangerous, that is all that is important."

"You overcame your fears and fought," he replied, "You are very strong, but with a pure soul and gentle heart. What did I ever do to deserve you?"

"I think it is the other way around," I replied, giving him a soft kiss.

His hand trailed through my hair, and the kiss turned passionate. "I love you, Hinata."

"I love you, too." I replied, and then gave a huge yawn. "I am going to go take a nap while the babies do. Do you want to join me?"

"I do." We quickly made our way to the bedroom and were soon lost in dreams of what could happen, our hopes for the future.

* * *

A/N, take two: Yeah, Sasuke is defeated, Naruto, Sakura and Hinata got to kick his butt (Though it was mostly Naruto, I'm sorry I couldn't show more of their fight). Just an epiloge left to write, and then this story is done. Random Trivia question, from what movie/book did I get the inspiration for this title? Can you guess? Thanks for reading (even though I am not the greatest writer) and please review and tell me what you think!


	30. Chapter 30

Author's note: Sorry it took me so long! First we moved, and then my laptop went all screwy on me (I still don't know what is wrong with it) and I am also studying to take my certification for my massage therapy license (Wish me luck), so now I have finally finished this story! Yeah! I am trying to work on my Tsunade one shot, but I have hit a road block, but don't worry, I will put it up! Read, enjoy, Review, please!

Disclaimer:

Alerya: Who is going to do it this time?

(Chirping of crickets in the distance)

Alerya: I'm out of my Naruto OC's. There isn;t anyone else left! (Pauses) Well, I can just make these people give it (snaps fingers and three Inu Hanyou appear, two girls and one boy)

Izayoi: Alerya, we don't even belong in Naruto! (Looks like Kagome, only with Dog ears, fangs, claws, and dark violet eyes)

Alerya: Iza, you are addicted to the anime and manga, help me out here!

Idara: We all like it, and it does deal a little with youkai, just different than us (Looks like Inuyasha's mother, only with Silver hair, amber eyes, dog ears, fangs and claws)

Katsuro: Alerya doesn't own Naruto, just plot line and her OC's (Looks just like Inuyasha)

Izayoi: Can you write about us next?

Alerya: I'll try, but I'll have to do my sequel to this one at the same time. (Thinking: _Why did I have to call these three?_)

* * *

"Why does the Hokage have so much stupid paperwork? Can we even afford to waste the paper all these are written on?" Naruto muttered, beginning to bang his forehead on the desk.

"I don't know. Do you really need to oversee all of this, or can we delegate most of it?" I asked as I began examining the multiple requests, suggestions, along with the occasional complaint. Coming to a conclusion, I said, "Most of this stuff we can. Do you really need to personally approve what students can do for detention at the Academy?"

"No, the principal should know his job well enough to be able to handle that on his own," Naruto agreed, "Let's sort through all of these and decide which is important enough that I personally need to over see."

That took about three hours, and once that was done, we brought in the heads of every department for an emergency meeting.

"Okay, everyone, we need to change a few things. We can't afford to be wasting so much paper on things that you are all competent enough to do on you own, and I need to be able to spend some with my family. Once a month, I want detailed summaries on what is happening with your areas. For requisition and budgets, try submitting those quarterly, and that way it will be easier for us to see any excess and deficiencies, which will make it easier to correct them."

Iruka, representing the academy principal who was sick with bronchitis, looked at the paper I had given him and smiled, "This makes a lot of sense, Naruto. How much did Hinata help you with this?"

Naruto scratched the back of his head, "Most of it was her idea. She is the main force behind the office running smoothly."

"I had to learn a lot of things like this when I was training to be the Hyuga clan head," I replied, "Just on a smaller scale. Even though I have given up my position, it is nice to see that my training has come in handy."

"I like this idea," Ibiki Morino said, "It will drastically cut down on how much time we have to spend with reports and such."

"Hey, one thing about this job is I have to trust people will do theirs, right?" Naruto remarked, "I think this is a step in the right direction. I will still issue missions and receive mission reports. That won't change. Does anyone have any ideas or complaints with the changes I've suggested?" No one answered, "Good, you are all dismissed."

Once they had left, Naruto grabbed my hand and pulled me down onto his lap, "Thank you so much for your help today, Hinata-hime. That should make this job a lot easier and leave us plenty of time to spend with the twins. Speaking of Minato and Sayuri, how exhausted do you think Tsunade-baachan is from babysitting them the whole day?"

I giggled as I gave him a quick kiss. The twins were sixteen months old now, and walking and getting into everything. "Worse than we are at the end of the day. She is fifty-six, or somewhere around that age."

"How about we get them and go out for ramen at Ichiraku's? We haven't been in over a month."

"Sure, I like the sound of that. I really am not in the mood to cook tonight, but we need to wait for a moment, we still have that bit of unfinished business to take care of," I reminded him.

A few minutes later, a knock sounded from the door. "Come in!" Naruto called out while I got off his lap and headed toward a closet that most people wouldn't notice. Konohamaru Sarutobi, now a Chunin, and Tenten came in, both looking confused by their summons.

"Good performance in the Chunin Exams, Konohamaru," Naruto said with a grin, "You came in third place in the tournament. I'm sorry I couldn't come."

"I understand, Boss, stuff happens," he replied with a grin. All that remained from Sasuke's attack was a scar on his face. He had been placed on a team with Hanabi, and Ebisu double-teamed with the other sensei when needed.

"Tenten, how are Neji and Hizashi doing?" I asked.

She laughed, "I have never seen Neji smile so much until you removed the seal from him, Hinata. Hizashi is doing well; he just has an ear infection right now and is keeping us up at night." Hizashi was their son, and was almost six months old.

"Boss, why are we here, unless you want me to teach at the Academy like Tenten-sensei does?"

"Maybe he wants me to tutor you in kenjutsu, because from what I hear from Hanabi, your aim needs some work," Tenten teased.

"I called you here because I have something which belongs to each of you," Naruto said. I silently opened up the cabinet behind me and pulled out two katanas in glossy, black sheaths. I handed one to Konohamaru and the other to Tenten.

Tenten looked at her new weapon with awe, "A Whirlpool Katana?"

"Like the ones you and Hinata-sama have, Boss? Awesome! Can you please teach me how to use it? I can't wait to show Hanabi!"

"Draw your blades, so that your katana will know whose blood it must not taste again." They both did, Konohamaru's sheath turned a dark green and Tenten's turned a dark red.

"Thank you," Tenten said.

"Don't thank us, you are the ones who proved yourselves worthy," Naruto replied. "Kakashi is going to teach you two how to use those things. He was, after all, taught first hand by Konoha's Katana Mistress."

"At least now he has decent excuses to be late, thanks to little Obito," Tenten laughed. We all joined her. Since the birth of his son eight months ago, Kakashi's excuses had finally gotten believable, and he was only, at the most, an hour late. Rin threatening him with diaper duty for a month if he ever fell back into his old habits again probably helped as well.

They both left and we locked to office up and headed home. About a month after Sasuke's defeat, we had moved into the old Namikaze properties, which had only received minimal damage from the Akatsuki's attack. Tsunade met us at the entrance, holding a giggling blonde toddler in each arm.

"We're home," Naruto said as he took little Minato from her. Minato looked more like Naruto every day, while Sayuri increasingly resembled me, except for her blonde Namikaze hair. I retrieved my daughter from her adoptive grandma and cuddled with her, relishing in the closeness after a day's separation. Most of the time, the twins came with us to the office and played or napped while we worked. "Want to get some ramen with us, Tsunade-baachan?"

"Sure, these two wore me out," Tsunade grinned as she tickled Sayuri's feet. The little girl squealed and kicked her feet.

As we headed toward Ichiraku's Naruto took my free hand and grinned at me. I smiled back and gave him a kiss on the cheek. _Who would have believed this? I'm now nineteen, a Jonin, the Rokudaime Hokage's wife, mother of two adorable twins, and I have removed the Caged Bird seal from my Former clan. I will never regret jumping in between Naruto and Pain. Look at what has happened to me because of that! _I began to giggle, which got Sayuri laughing.

"What's so funny?" Naruto asked.

I just laughed again, "Nothing, just remembering a few things. I'm grateful and happy with my life. I wouldn't change it for anything. Why can't I laugh about that?"

"No reason why not to. I know what you mean. I wouldn't change any thing either, except for the amount of paperwork I have to do."

"Isn't that what Shadow Clones are for?"

Our combined laughter rang through the streets of Konoha, making others smile. It was a good time for us, and it is our responsibility to keep it that way. I welcomed the challenge, with Naruto at my side.

* * *

A/N, take Two: And That's a wrap, everyone! Thank you everyone who has read, left a review, voted in one of my polls, or just done something. I had fun with this, and keep your eyes open for what ever it is I'll do next!


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